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Former Kano State Governor and national leader of the Kwankwasiyya movement, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, says he remains willing to forgive Governor Abba Yusuf and reconcile with him despite their political differences, insisting that his affection for his former protégé has not diminished.
Relationship between the two politicians soured after Yusuf defected from the New Nigeria People’s Party, under which he won the 2023 governorship election, to the ruling All Progressives Congress, a move that drew sharp criticism from members of the Kwankwasiyya movement.
Speaking in an interview in a video posted by BBC Hausa on Monday, Kwankwaso, who has also defected from NNPP to the Nigeria Democratic Congress, said the door to reconciliation remains open.
He stressed that Yusuf was the one who chose to leave their political fold and that he would not turn him away if he decided to return.
“I still love Abba and I didn’t reject him, he is the one that left. So not just Abba, if anyone who left comes back, I won’t be unforgiving. Look at Ganduje, in the many years we worked together, we fell out several times and got back together. That is how politics works,” he said.
Kwankwaso argued that Yusuf’s electoral victory was made possible by the strength of the movement.
“We picked Abba to contest under the NNPP and we won, but he left to join the people we defeated. Some say he did so because he feared losing his position, but he knows there was no way we would have been defeated in Kano. If that were the case, we would have lost when he contested under our party,” he stated.
The former governor further explained that the movement intentionally fielded Yusuf in 2023 to demonstrate its political influence.
“We did not choose him because he was the most senior or the most educated. We chose him because we wanted to test the strength and calibre of the Kwankwasiyya movement at that time,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of tolerance in leadership, Kwankwaso said leaders must accept differing opinions and embrace forgiveness.
“As a leader, you need to have an open heart. You cannot force people to think the way you do because we all come from different backgrounds and have different perspectives.
Without forgiveness, we would not have come this far,” he added.
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