Ganduje: NNPP Is Playing A Prank And It Is A Very Dangerous Game – NWC Member

Some members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Kano State chapter of the party has condemned the suspension of the party’s National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, by the leadership of his ward in the Dawakin Tofa Local Government of Kano State.

Recall that the Legal Adviser of the Ganduje ward, Halliru Gwanjo, at a press briefing in Kano on Monday, declared Ganduje suspended from the party.

Gwanzo said the APC ward leadership took the decision in view of the bribery allegations hanging on Ganduje’s neck.

He made reference to the bribery charges, involving $413,000 and N1.38bn, filed by the Kano State Government against Ganduje and his arraignment scheduled for Thursday, April 18 before the Kano State High Court.

However, some NWC members alleged that the allegation was a plot by the Kano State government and the hierarchy of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) in the state.

The National Legal Adviser of the APC, Abdulkareem Kana, described the development as a foul play from the ruling NNPP government in Kano.

He said, “There is nothing like suspension anywhere. It is the NNPP that is playing a prank and this is a very dangerous game they are playing. This is coming from me as a member of the APC NWC. No organ or structure of the party is involved in this so-called suspension.

“We don’t even know the ward party leaders involved. Let them go and check our Constitution to see what it says about the suspension of members more so the National Chairman of the APC. Before a member can be said to be suspended, the NWC must approve it and, in the case of the national chairman, the NEC must also approve.

“How can a ward just wake up one day and announce that it has suspended the national chairman? So my official reaction to this rumour is this: First, it is not true that anything like that happens. Secondly, they don’t have the capacity to do that. So it is just nonsense talk.”

His position was shared to Punch by the Senior Special Assistant to the APC National Chairman on Public Enlightenment, Oliver Okpala.

Okpala argued that those pushing for the suspension of the party’s national chairman were dissident members who were being used by the NNPP government.

He said “Those behind the alleged suspension are dissident members who have no locus. They are no more than political thugs being used to cause disaffection in the party. But I am glad the Kano APC has put the record straight by voiding the baseless propaganda and casting aspersions on the perpetrators.

“You can even tell the bias and vindictive nature of the Kano government from the manner the probe panel against the national chairman is being set up. It is a clear indication that the NNPP government will stop at nothing, even trying to infiltrate the rank and file of the APC at state and ward levels. But it cannot hold any water.”

The Deputy Organising Secretary of the APC, Nze Chidi Duru, also revealed that the NWC was not officially communicated on the alleged suspension.

Duru said until such a move was properly communicated, it remained in the realm of conjectures.

He said, “As the normal channel of communication, we are not aware. Just like you, we read it in the news wire, which is being circulated and shared across all platforms. But we have not been informed of that and we wonder whether this is how communications within an internal party is conducted.

“However, we will wait to see if indeed that has been communicated to the party. But as of now that I speak with you, no formal communication of such a thing has reached the party. Until that is done, we can’t give consideration to such talk. It remains in the realm of conjectures. Ganduje is just not the National Chairman of the party, we are talking about a man who was a two-term deputy governor of Kano State and, of course, he also became a governor under the flag of the party.

“It will be curious to lose the support of his state, let alone the ward where he is resident. But again, there is no defence offered unless this is communicated, only then can we make a proper determination whether the proper channel was used and whether the ward can actually suspend him.”