• NNPP faction rationalises Yusuf’s defection to APC
• Party divided over candidates for Kano by-elections

Kano State government has said the lingering issues surrounding the emirate tussle would soon be resolved amicably.

The Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Ibrahim Waiya, disclosed this yesterday during a live programme in Kano.

He assured the residents that concrete measures had been put in place to restore lasting peace and stability in the state.

Waiya said the government was committed to engaging all stakeholders, stressing that the administration was determined to ensure that the emirate matter does not continue to generate tension or jeopardise governance.

According to him, the government’s approach is guided by respect for the rule of law, traditional institutions, and the collective interests of the people of Kano State.

He said the state government had put concrete measures in place to restore lasting peace and stability, hinting that the “two emirs” stalemate was nearing its conclusion.

For nearly two years, Kano has been trapped in a deadlock as Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II and Emir Aminu Ado Bayero have been respectively laying claim to the throne.

While Sanusi has been operating from the main Gidan Rumfa palace, Ado Bayero has remained at the Nasarawa mini-palace.

However, a faction of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) loyal to its founder, Dr Boniface Aniebonam, has stated that Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf did not leave the Kwankwasiyya movement and the party for personal reasons.

The group insisted that Yusuf left the party because of what it described as attempts by Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso to suppress and dominate him.

According to the faction, it was “Kwankwaso who betrayed the trust of the NNPP, and not the governor.”

The NNPP faction claimed that Yusuf made several uniting efforts that were repeatedly frustrated.

It added that its position followed comments by Buba Galadima on Yusuf’s d move from the NNPP to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In a statement issued by NNPP’s Deputy National Chairman (North West), Sani Danmasani, the party advised Kwankwaso and his associates to seek intervention from family members and close allies, including Buba Galadima, before the situation worsens.

Relatedly, the crisis rocking the party has widened as factions are divided over the choice of candidates to represent it in the upcoming by-election in Kano State.

The lingering division took a fresh dimension following the release of the schedule of activities by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the February 21, 2026, poll in the state.

The off-season election to fill the vacant seats of Kano Municipal and Ungogo State constituencies was necessitated by the demise of two state legislators, Sarki Aliyu Daneji and Aminu Sa’adu, who passed away on the same day in December 2025.

Briefing journalists on the timeline of the poll, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Ambassador Abdu Zango, said the embargo on political campaigns would be lifted on 8 and suspended on February 19, 2026.

The INEC chief revealed that total registered voters in the two constituencies stood at 535,646, while 512,135 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) had so far been collected by eligible voters.