The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has dismissed reports that its presidential candidate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, plans to step down to ally with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the 2023 presidential election. Earlier this week, a PDP presidential campaign council spokesperson alleged that Kwankwaso would withdraw from the race to support Atiku.
In response, NNPP’s National Publicity Secretary, Agbo Major, issued a statement on Monday, describing the reports as “falsehoods and stupid propaganda.” Major expressed confidence in Kwankwaso’s ability to win the election, stating, “Kwankwaso is in this race to win and will win.”
Despite allegations of a potential alliance, Kwankwaso has repeatedly stated his intention to win the presidency. He is one of 18 candidates running in the election to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.
Earlier this week, Kwankwaso expressed surprise over the backlash on President Buhari by some governors elected on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) over the Naira redesign policy. The NNPP presidential candidate claimed the criticism was because the policy had rendered their looted money useless.
“In each state, you have branches of banks, and in some states, you have even the national headquarters of those banks,” Kwankwaso said. “On the one hand, we thought they (governors) would take all the billions from government houses. However, he realized these same governors were abusing and insulting their leaders, but he was shocked and never thought some could abuse Buhari to that level. The policy has made that looted money useless, making them angry.” Overall, NNPP has reiterated its confidence in Kwankwaso’s candidacy and dismissed reports of an alliance with Atiku as mere propaganda.
