Supporters of the Kwankwasiyya Movement have rejected reports that the leadership of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) has replaced some party candidates loyal to Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso in Kano State.
Reports had claimed that the NDC altered the list of candidates earlier submitted by the Kwankwasiyya faction following an alleged breach of a power-sharing arrangement within the party.
A document reportedly signed by the Kano State Chairman of the NDC, Hussaini Isah Mairiga, stated that the changes were made to align with an earlier agreement on the distribution of party positions and elective tickets between the party’s existing structure and the Kwankwasiyya bloc.
The document, which was reportedly copied to NDC National Leader Senator Seriake Dickson, Kwankwasiyya leader Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, and the party’s North-West Zonal Chairman, also contained adjustments to the list of candidates for federal and state legislative seats.
Reacting to the development, the National Spokesperson of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Habib Mai-Lemo, dismissed the report and insisted that all aspirants from the Kwankwaso camp emerged through due process.
Speaking on Monday, Mai-Lemo said the movement was treating the report as a rumour pending official confirmation, noting that both the party leadership in the state and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) participated in the processes that produced the candidates.
He maintained that nomination forms were issued by the party and that candidates emerged either through consensus arrangements or primary elections conducted in line with party procedures.
According to him, no complaints were raised during the nomination and selection processes, and the movement had not received any official communication regarding the alleged changes.
Mai-Lemo added that the state party chairman was involved throughout the candidate selection process and that INEC representatives were present, making the reported alterations surprising to members of the Kwankwasiyya Movement.
“I also saw on social media that some candidates are being dropped a week after the primaries were conducted.
“It was not Kwankwaso that sold nomination forms, it was the party and as such processes were followed either through consensus or primary election.
“All our candidates participated in the processes from start to finish. While the processes were going on, we never received any complaints from anybody. We didn’t block anybody from buying forms because at the first place we didn’t sell the forms.
