NNPP distances itself from Kwankwaso’s move to join APC
Says defection is personal, not party decision
By Maureen Aguta
The National Secretary of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Comrade Oginni Olaposi, has clarified that the reported plan to join the All Progressives Congress (APC) is a personal decision of Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and his Kwankwasiya movement, not that of the NNPP.
Speaking to journalists on Monday in Lagos, Olaposi stated that Kwankwaso’s recent declaration of readiness to join the ruling APC confirms that he and his loyalists are no longer part of the NNPP.
Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State and the NNPP’s 2023 presidential candidate, had announced on Saturday that he and his followers were prepared to return to the APC, warning that his political movement would not allow itself to be used and abandoned by any political party.
Reacting to the development, the NNPP national scribe said Kwankwaso’s statement vindicated the party’s decision to expel him and his associates for anti-party activities.
“By that declaration, Kwankwaso has finally admitted that he and his movement are no longer members of the NNPP,” Olaposi said. “Our party can now have some peace after all the resistance we faced from them even after their expulsion.”
He stressed that the NNPP bears no animosity toward the ruling APC, adding that any future alliance would be based on collective decision-making and in the best interest of all members.
“If at any point before the 2027 general elections we decide to form an alliance with the APC or any other party, it will be a decision taken by the entire NNPP, not by individuals,” he explained. “For now, we are focused on rebuilding our structures nationwide after the crises and litigations caused by Kwankwaso and his followers.”
Olaposi noted that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the NNPP and the Kwankwasiya movement ended after the 2023 presidential election, and that trouble began when Kwankwaso allegedly attempted to hijack the party’s leadership structure.
“The MoU expired with the election. Instead of leaving peacefully, they tried to take over the party. We can’t wait to see them fully integrated into another political platform,” he said.
He described Kwankwaso as “politically overrated,” arguing that his influence had waned since his fallout with the NNPP.
“Kwankwaso’s political value has dropped sharply after betraying