Magaji Mato Claims Kano Governor Abba Yusuf’s Conscience Haunted Over Kwankwasiyya Ties Amid APC Defection

The National Legal Adviser of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Magaji Mato, SAN, has suggested that Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf may be grappling with his conscience following his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly over his continued public association with the Kwankwasiyya Movement.

Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Wednesday, Mato highlighted what he described as a conflict between political ideology and symbolic allegiance. Yusuf, along with other politicians who defected to the APC, has continued to wear the red cap associated with the Kwankwasiyya Movement, signaling loyalty to its leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

Mato argued that the red cap represents more than a mere symbol—it embodies the ideology and principles of the Kwankwasiyya Movement. Aligning with a party whose platform opposes these principles, he said, could create a moral and political dilemma for defectors.

“Wearing the red cap is the signature of Kwankwaso and the Kwankwasiyya. If you claim to be a Kwankwasiyya and operate in another party that promotes a completely different ideology, you have yourself to answer,” Mato said.

He suggested that the tension between loyalty to Kwankwaso’s ideology and membership in the ruling APC may be causing internal conflict among defecting politicians.

“So I think maybe their consciences are haunting them. They are finding it hard to sever themselves from the very roots that brought them into political existence. It could be,” Mato added.

The NNPP legal adviser also emphasized the pivotal role Kwankwaso played in Governor Yusuf’s political rise. “It was based on the Kwankwaso ideology that this current governor of Kano State came to power. I can authoritatively tell you that it wasn’t Governor Abba who was voted into power—it was Kwankwaso,” he said.

Mato’s remarks come amid heightened political scrutiny in Kano, where allegiances are being tested ahead of the 2027 general elections, raising questions about loyalty, ideology, and the future of the Kwankwasiyya Movement within Nigeria’s political landscape.