A lawmaker representing Kano Central, Rufa’i Hanga, has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
NEWSNGR reports that Hanga, the only opposition lawmaker from the state in the Senate, joined the APC after leaving the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
The Senator joined the ruling party on Saturday alongside other leaders and about 136,000 supporters.
He was received by the APC national chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, governor of Kano, Abba and former governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje, alongside thousands of supporters at the party’s mega rally held at the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano.
At the event, the party unveiled the Tinubu Support Group, the campaign structure for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election.
In a video of the event, Yilwatda, Yusuf and Ganduje could be seen wearing APC-branded caps bearing the Tinubu insignia, alongside about 20 leaders from opposition parties, as they welcomed the defectors into the APC.
In a post on 𝕏, Hassan Tukur, senior special assistant on new media to the governor of Kano, listed Hanga; Kabiru Gaya, a former senator and chairman of a faction of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP); and Ali Datti Yako, Kano NDC vice-chairman, among the defectors.
Others, according to him, include Badaru Umar, former chairman of Ungogo LGA; Isyaku Danja, former speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly; and Yusuf Danbatta, former PDP deputy governorship candidate, alongside their supporters.
Speaking at the event, Ganduje said the gathering indicated and confirmed that Tinubu’s renewed hope agenda was working.
“We are not surprised because Mr President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is a progressive leader who has the foresight to look into the future for the sustainable development of our country,” he said.
