APC welcomes Shekarau, Gwarzo, Bagobiri to party in Kano
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State has formally welcomed three political heavyweights who recently defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), assuring them of full integration into the
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State has formally welcomed three political heavyweights who recently defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), assuring them of full integration into the party.
The defectors are former Governor Ibrahim Shekarau, Senator Bello Hayatu Gwarzo, and Alhaji Yahaya Umar Bagobiri.
In a statement on Sunday, APC State Publicity Secretary, Comrade Auwalu Abdullahi Sani Mainagge, said the party was “pleased to officially welcome three distinguished sons of Kano and elder statesmen into the fold.”
Shekarau, the Sardaunan Kano, was received at a ceremony in his Giginyu Ward, Nassarawa Local Government Area, by Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and the APC state leadership, under the chairmanship of Hon. Umar Haruna Doguwa. Shekarau was given his APC membership card at the event.
The party said the defection of the three leaders reflects the “inclusive vision, people-centered policies, and leadership” of President Bola Tinubu and the APC at the federal and state levels.
Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau is a career educationist who rose to the rank of Permanent Secretary in the Kano State Civil Service before retiring in 2001. He was Governor of Kano from 2003 to 2011 — the first to serve two consecutive terms. He was Minister of Education from 2014 to 2015, and Senator for Kano Central from 2019 to 2023.
Senator Bello Hayatu Gwarzo represented Kano North from 1999 to 2015, serving across the 4th to 7th National Assemblies. He was Senate Chief Whip from 2011 to 2015 and earned the nickname “Mr. Order” for his mastery of legislative procedure. He chaired the Senate Committees on Labour and FCT, and served on Police Affairs, MDGs, and Appropriation Committees. Until his defection, he was PDP Northwest vice chairman.
Alhaji Yahaya Umar Bagobiri is a grassroots politician with over 30 years in party administration. He was SDP Secretary and later Chairman in the Nasarawa Local Government Area, Assistant Secretary of DPN in Kano, and PDP Deputy Chairman in the state from 2013 to 2015. He chaired PDP caucuses in the Nasarawa Local Government Area for nearly three decades and was Chairman of the PDP Elders Committee in Kano until his defection. Nationally, he coordinated M.K.O. Abiola’s 1993 presidential campaign in Kano and Atiku Abubakar’s campaigns in 2011, 2019, and 2023.
The APC said their defection consolidates “experience, institutional memory, and grassroots structures” ahead of future elections, adding that their “administrative depth — from the classroom to Government House, and from the red chamber to party caucuses — brings proven capacity for policy formulation, education reform, and legislative oversight.”
“As elder statesmen, they command respect across party lines and will serve as stabilisers in Kano’s political landscape, fostering unity and issue-based politics,” the statement said.
Party Chairman Hon. Umar Haruna Doguwa assured the new members of a “level playing field, full integration into all party organs, and the opportunity to contribute to the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu and the transformative Kano First Agenda of the state.”
