NNPP chairman accuses Kwankwaso of using party as a bargaining chip, alleging personal interests influenced his actions after the 2023 election
The National Chairman of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), Agbo Gilbert Major, has accused former Kano State governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of using the party as a personal bargaining tool following his exit from the platform.
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Major made the allegation on Tuesday, 21 July 2026, during an interview on Trust TV, where he discussed the NNPP’s preparations for the 2027 general elections and the political journey of Kwankwaso, who represented the party in the 2023 presidential election.
The NNPP chairman claimed that Kwankwaso’s activities during the 2023 campaign suggested that his focus was limited to Kano State and parts of the North rather than building a nationwide political movement.
“As the image maker of the party, I was not part of what they were doing,” Major said.
He alleged that he raised concerns at the time because Kwankwaso appeared not to be fully engaged in the presidential campaign across the country.
“And at a point when I raised the alarm that it never appeared to me as if Kwankwaso was running for any election. He went to a few states when other candidates were campaigning,” Major said.
According to the NNPP leader, Kwankwaso failed to visit some key regions during the campaign period.
“He abandoned the entire Southeast, the entire Southwest, and all of that. He only went to Kano. So it became clear to me that his interest was Kano, and then maybe part of Jigawa State,” he added.
Major alleged that Kwankwaso’s relationship with the NNPP was driven by personal political calculations rather than a long-term commitment to developing the party.
“But the truth is that he only used the party as a bargaining chip for himself. That’s exactly what happened,” he claimed.
Kwankwaso was the NNPP presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, where he finished fourth behind the candidates of the All Progressives Congress, Peoples Democratic Party and Labour Party.
He later moved into a new political arrangement as the vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) ahead of the 2027 elections, a move that has continued to attract debate within political circles.
Despite Kwankwaso’s departure, Major insisted that the NNPP remains active and prepared for the next election cycle.
“We are still alive. We just concluded the uploading of our National Assembly candidates and our presidential candidate,” he said.
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The allegations add to ongoing political realignments ahead of the 2027 polls, as parties work to strengthen structures, select candidates and build alliances across Nigeria’s political landscape.
