Fresh Details Emerge as Gawuna Sets to Dump Kwankwaso, NDC for ADC

The 2023 governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State, Dr. Nasiru Gawuna, is preparing to defect from the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) following ongoing negotiations.

Discussions between Gawuna’s camp and the ADC leadership in Kano have reached an advanced stage, with a final meeting scheduled to conclude the arrangements.

The development follows Gawuna’s resignation from the APC and his exit as chairman of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria three months ago. After leaving the APC in March, Gawuna briefly joined the ADC alongside the Kwankwasiyya Movement before moving to the NDC in May alongside the movement’s National Leader, Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Upon joining the NDC, Gawuna accepted the party’s Kano Central senatorial ticket, while the party chose the immediate past deputy governor of Kano State, Aminu Gwarzo, as its consensus governorship candidate for the 2027 election.

Kano State chairman of the ADC, Musa Ungogo, confirmed the ongoing discussions, clarifying that the integration process was initiated by Gawuna’s camp rather than the party leadership.

“The story being circulated that the ADC approached Gawuna is not correct. It was Gawuna who approached us. He sent a delegation to meet us, and discussions have been ongoing since then,” he said.

Ungogo stated that a delegation representing Gawuna met with the party’s executive committee over the weekend to deliberate on the terms of entry.

The delegation included former Chairman of Kumbotso Local Government Area, Alhaji Sagir Fanshekara, and Hon. Kadawa, who held preliminary talks with the ADC state chairman and secretary.

According to Ungogo, the requests presented by the delegation include securing the ADC governorship ticket for the 2027 election for Gawuna, alongside political opportunities for loyalists interested in contesting state assembly and National Assembly seats.

The delegation proposed a consensus model under which existing ADC governorship aspirants would step down for Gawuna. The camp argued that Gawuna holds significant political influence across multiple local government areas and possesses the necessary capacity to lead the party to a electoral victory.

The ADC leadership has requested a formal, written submission from Gawuna’s team detailing their specific political interests, positional requests, and targeted local government areas. The party plans to review the document thoroughly before making an official position known to stakeholders.

While consultations remain active, the ADC leadership emphasized that a final agreement has not yet been signed, noting that the party seeks an arrangement that satisfies all existing party members and stakeholders.

Meanwhile, a close associate of Gawuna confirmed that cross-party consultations are underway but declined to provide further details on the specific terms being negotiated.