Ganduje Quits As APC Chairman Amid Moves To Welcome Kwankwaso Into Party

Fresh details have surfaced surrounding the abrupt resignation of the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, on Friday.

Naija News reports that insiders familiar with the development linked Ganduje’s decision to mounting concerns over the anticipated defection of his longtime political rival, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, to the ruling party.

According to multiple party sources who spoke with Saturday Punch, Ganduje’s resignation is tied to an ongoing arrangement between President Bola Tinubu and Kwankwaso, a former Kano State governor and presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), aimed at bringing Kwankwaso formally into the APC fold.

By 3 p.m. on Friday, tension reportedly gripped the APC national secretariat in Abuja, as senior party officials scrambled to persuade Ganduje to remain in office.

“We are all pleading with him not to step down. He is visibly upset that Kwankwaso is coming to the APC. The two of them are arch-rivals. Everyone is begging him,” an insider revealed.

Despite these efforts, news broke around 4:15 p.m. that Ganduje had tendered his resignation.

“He has finally resigned. We couldn’t stop him. This is deeply personal between him and Kwankwaso, who is set to join after talks with the President,” a source confirmed.

While the resignation shocked many, the atmosphere at the APC headquarters reportedly stayed calm, with party members gathering only to deliberate on the implications.

“There’s no crisis, just discussions following the chairman’s resignation,” a party official noted.

Ganduje and Kwankwaso have a well-documented history of fierce rivalry stemming from Kano politics. Ganduje served as Kwankwaso’s deputy between 2011 and 2015 before succeeding him as governor, a transition that triggered years of intense political battles for control of the state.