The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has said one of its governorship aspirants in Kano State, Ibrahim Khalil, is unlikely to emerge as the party’s candidate ahead of the 2027 elections because of his alleged support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Speaking at a press conference in Kano on Monday, the party’s Deputy National Chairman (North West), Naja’atu Mohammed, said Khalil had openly shown support for President Tinubu on several occasions, raising concerns about his commitment to the ADC.

According to her, the party’s seven-member consensus committee, led by Ben Obi, would find it difficult to endorse any aspirant whose loyalty to the ADC’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, is in doubt.

“He has publicly declared support for President Tinubu in the past and even now,” Mohammed said.

She added that, given the current economic and security challenges facing northern Nigeria, it would be difficult for many people in the region to support any politician believed to be aligned with the Tinubu administration.

“No fair-minded Northerner would want to politically associate with any aspirant or candidate perceived to be loyal to President Tinubu,” she said.

Mohammed argued that the North has experienced increasing hardship, hunger and insecurity in recent years, claiming the situation has left many families devastated.

She also dismissed reports suggesting that she alone was responsible for the party’s decision not to back Ibrahim Khalil for the governorship ticket.

“I am only a member of the consensus committee assigned to handle the task,” she said.

At the same event, Mohammed announced the inauguration of a new caretaker committee to oversee the affairs of the ADC in Kano State.

The committee is headed by Umar Bala as caretaker chairman, with Ismail Musa Ibrahim serving as secretary. Other members include Lawal Adamu Giginyu as publicity secretary and Barrister Mohammed Lawal Adamu as the party’s legal adviser.

Several governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on Tuesday arrived in Kebbi State for the Progressive First-Term Governors’ Meeting.

The meeting is being held at the Government House, Birnin Kebbi, where the governors are expected to deliberate on national and party-related issues.

Among those in attendance are the governors of Kaduna, Plateau, Ekiti, Delta, Zamfara, Kano, Jigawa, Ebonyi, Edo, Ondo, Kogi, Sokoto and Benue states, among others.

The governors were received by the host, Nasir Idris, alongside the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, upon their arrival at the Government House, Birnin Kebbi.

According to information available to DAILY POST, the meeting is expected to focus on matters of national importance and issues affecting the ruling APC.

Discussions are also expected to centre on strengthening intergovernmental collaboration, advancing the party’s development agenda, and exploring strategies to promote good governance, sustainable economic growth, national unity and the collective interests of Nigerians.

The chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum is expected to brief journalists on the outcome of the deliberations at the end of the meeting.

Nigerians have been advised to stop electing dullards as governors, and instead prioritise competence, capacity and character over party loyalty, money politics and ethnic sentiments.

The Ogun State governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Biodun Collins Ogundipe, gave the advice during a media chat in Abeokuta, on Monday.

Ogundipe asserted that poor leadership at the state level is responsible for the country’s developmental challenges, arguing that many states are underdeveloped because voters repeatedly elect individuals who lack vision, knowledge and the capacity to govern.

He called on Nigerians, especially youths to scrutinise candidates ahead of the 2027 elections and vote for leaders with track records and clear development blueprints. 

He said, “Forget about all this guys who will come and campaign to you and say don’t worry, when you get on that day you grab it, run away, steal it. Those days are gone.

“If people are still following such campaigns slogans and they are not telling you how they want to change your life positively, the life of your children and your generations to come then, you should have no business in this 21st century voting for such a person or people that cannot show you track records of what they have done either in the private sector or even in their own business.

“They will say I run a business, sir, come and show us how you have turned over that business so we can know that we are entrusting you with the allocation and resources of this state. People don’t have track records that we can even verify.  

He asserted that governance is about people and the government of the state does not care about people in the grassroots.

Ogundipe also argued that contemporary security management goes beyond the deployment of armed personnel and weapons, insisting that effective policing in the 21st century is driven by intelligence gathering, prediction, prevention and rapid intervention.

“Ask them of their template for the state, there must be a blueprint. Security is not about carrying guns to chase criminals after the crime has been committed, no, securing lives is not about buying amoured tanks, you see all these governors, dullards, dullards is what you elect as governors.

“They spend billions buying amoured tanks and patrol vehicles when it can be solved through Artificial intelligence driven solutions,” he added.