Gov. Ganduje Set To Contest For Senate; Endorses Deputy As Successor

Governor Abdullah Umar Ganduje is set to buy the nomination form for the Kano North senatorial district ahead of the All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries in the state.

Besides, the Governor also endorsed his deputy, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, as his successor while the immediate past commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy, Murtala Sule Garo was picked as deputy.

OduNews gathered that the decisions were parts of resolutions agreed on by the party stakeholders under the leadership of Ganduje earlier hours on Sunday.

Although the criteria used for the choice of Gawuna and Garo were not known yet, many believed the duo may have been rewarded for their role during Ganduje’s inconclusive election.

Ganduje, whose two-term tenure would end by May 29, 2023, is set to displace Senator Barau Jibrin who is also contending for the gubernatorial ticket under APC.

Barau, however, has remained silent on his next line of ambition after the Friday Supreme Court judgment which dismissed his G7 group appeal against Ganduje.

Similarly, the stakeholder’s resolution for Gawuna and Garo has unsettled other gubernatorial aspirants, including Barr. Inuwa Waya, A.A. Zaura, Aminu Dabo, and former speaker, Kabiru Alhassan Rurum, have invested millions of naira in the party and campaign in the last six months.

The outcome of the stakeholder’s meeting is to be made official on Monday.

While defending the position of the stakeholders as the only solution to mutual interest and peace in the party, Sarina stressed that other contenders have agreed on the new arrangement.

However, the former speaker of Kano State, Kabiru Alhassan Rurum, Sunday dumped the ruling party ostensibly in the displeasure of the stakeholder’s consensus arrangement.

Rurum, who is presently representing Rano/Bunkure/Kibiya Federal Constituency of Kano State, confirmed his decision to The Guardian on the telephone but did not disclose which of the political party he would return to.

“I am confirming to you that I am no longer a member of APC in Kano and that is exactly what I will tell you for now. I will keep you informed of my next political move very soon,” Rurum said.

According to the source, Rurum decided to quit APC following Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje’s endorsement of his deputy Gawuna as governorship candidate and immediate past commissioner for local government, Murtala Sule Garo as deputy.

Rurum, who had claimed that Kano South has been neglected and never produced a substantive governor since the return of democracy in 1999, vowed to change the narrative as the only candidate from the south.

Rurum’s action is coming less than 24 hours after a former member of the House and Director General of Bola Tinubu’s presidential campaign, Abdulmumin Jibrin also dumped the party.

The effort to speak to Kano State Commissioner for Information, Muhammad Garba, on the development was not successful. He did not pick up his calls and could not reply to inquiries through text.