…Accuses FG of Plot to Frustrate Party’s Chances in Kano

The opposition Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has rejected the omission of its Kano State governorship candidate, Comrade Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, and his running mate, Mustapha Rabiu Kwankwaso, on the final list of candidates published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2027 general election.

The party also accused the Federal Government of allegedly mounting pressure on the electoral umpire to frustrate its chances in Kano, warning INEC to maintain its independence and avoid undue interference in the electoral process.

The document, published on INEC’s website on Saturday evening, contained the names of governorship candidates and their running mates from 17 political parties, including A, AA, AAC, ADC, ADP, APC, APGA, APM, APP, BP, DLA, LP, NDP, PDP, PRP, SDP and ZLP.

Among the candidates on the final list are Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and Murtala Sule Garo, the governorship candidate and running mate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), respectively, as well as Abacha Muhammad Sani and Kibiya Yusuf Ado of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Others include Ibrahim Ali Amin and Shehu Abdulkadir Bari of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Koguna Nasiru Hassan and his running mate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), among others.

However, the names of Gwarzo, a former deputy governor and close ally of Kwankwasiyya leader Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, and his running mate were conspicuously absent from the list.

Gwarzo emerged as the NDC’s consensus governorship candidate alongside Mustapha Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a former Commissioner for Youth in Kano State and eldest son of the Kwankwasiyya leader.

The duo were reportedly nominated with the backing of Kwankwaso, who is also the NDC’s presidential running mate for the 2027 election, to challenge the ruling APC in Kano.

Reacting to the development, the NDC Chairman in Kano State, Hon. Husaini Mairiga, expressed disappointment over the omission of the party’s candidates, alleging external interference in the electoral process.

Mairiga, who spoke with The Guardian, questioned why the NDC and its candidates were excluded from INEC’s final list despite allegedly fulfilling all the necessary requirements.

According to the NDC chieftain, the opposition party would explore every available lawful means to ensure the restoration of its candidates’ names to the ballot ahead of the commencement of campaigns and the election.

He insisted that only the people of Kano should determine the outcome of the governorship election.

“We feel very bad and disappointed over the omission of our candidates’ names from INEC’s list, but I can assure you that the party will go the extra mile to ensure their names are restored on INEC’s website.

“I don’t know why INEC decided to omit our candidates because, to the best of our knowledge, we have fulfilled all the necessary requirements, and our candidates have met all the conditions stipulated for the election.

“Let me also warn INEC, in particular, not to allow itself to be used to perpetrate any unlawful act. INEC is expected to remain independent, even though we know the Federal Government is mounting pressure on the electoral body,” Mairiga alleged.

The party chairman insisted that the NDC was prepared to defend its integrity and the eligibility of its candidates while urging supporters to remain calm and law-abiding in the face of what he described as provocation.

However, the spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State, Auwalu Soja, said the ruling party was not surprised by the development, citing earlier allegations of discrepancies in the academic and other official records submitted by the NDC candidates.

Soja claimed that the APC had previously raised concerns over alleged discrepancies in the candidate’s date of birth and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate, which he suggested might have contributed to the omission.

“What happened was that, if you could remember, about two months ago, the Northwest Chairman of the NDC, Sabo Bakinzuwo, raised concerns over discrepancies in the date of birth of their candidate, Aminu Abdussalam, particularly when compared with the information contained in his NYSC certificate. The dates on the two documents did not correspond,” Soja alleged.