Barring any last-minute reversal, former Kano State Governor Malam Ibrahim Shekarau is finalising plans to return to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a major political realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The former Minister of Education, who currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), reportedly reached the decision following separate closed-door meetings with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
Reliable sources indicate that Shekarau met with President Tinubu in Lagos during the Easter break at the President’s invitation, facilitated by key APC stakeholders.
The meeting was aimed at strengthening the ruling party’s hold in the politically strategic Kano State.
On Sunday evening, Governor Yusuf, accompanied by APC State Chairman Hon. Umar Haruna Doguwa and Commissioner for Transportation Barr. Haruna Isa Dederi, visited Shekarau at his residence in Kano in what is seen as a strategic bid to bring the influential politician back into the APC fold.
The governor’s visit came barely two weeks after Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement and Shekarau’s former political ally, paid a similar visit to Shekarau seeking alignment in the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC).
While Kwankwaso failed to secure Shekarau’s support for the ADC, he successfully won over Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, Shekarau’s close ally and former Deputy Governor, who has since defected to the ADC after resigning his federal appointment.
Shifting Political Landscape in KanoThe political dynamics in Kano changed significantly in February when Governor Yusuf parted ways with his political mentor Kwankwaso and moved from the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) to the APC to take full control of his political structure amid prolonged crisis in the NNPP.
Kwankwaso himself later left the NNPP for the ADC last week, a move observers see as an attempt to consolidate his shrinking influence.
Shekarau, a prominent figure in the PDP’s Kabiru Taminu Turaki-led faction, had publicly defended Governor Yusuf’s defection to the APC, describing it as consistent with Kwankwaso’s own history of political movement.
In a recent local radio interview, Shekarau said: “When he (Kwankwaso) left the PDP for the APC, he took the governorship seat along with him. Why didn’t he surrender it to the PDP? In the same way, Abba can move the NNPP seat to the APC.”
Shekarau was a founding member of the APC but left the party after Kwankwaso joined and took control of its structure in Kano. He later reconciled with Kwankwaso in 2022 before their alliance collapsed over power-sharing disagreements.
When contacted, Shekarau’s spokesperson, Associate Professor Sule Yau Sule, confirmed the recent meetings with Governor Yusuf and President Tinubu.
He noted that his principal regularly consults with political leaders and that a final decision on his next political move would be announced after consultations are concluded.
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