Court overturns Kwankwaso’s NNPP suspension

The judge also overturned “the purported suspension of Sen. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as member of the applicant (NNPP)”.

The suspension of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) presidential candidate for 2023 from the party has been overturned by a Kano State High Court.

On Tuesday, Justice Usman Na’aana issued an interim injunction prohibiting Boniface Aniebonam, Agbo Major, and 16 other respondents from impersonating party national officers or leaders while the motion of notice is being heard and decided.

The judge also overturned “the purported suspension of Sen. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as member of the applicant (NNPP)”.

On August 29, 2023, Kwankwaso was suspended for six months by a faction of the NNPP led by chieftains Aniebonam and Major for socialising with politicians outside the party.

Former governor of Kano State Kwankwaso finished fourth in this year’s presidential election.

The Aniebonam and Major group, which controls the NNPP Board of Trustees, stated in public that “material evidence” proved that Kwankwaso had engaged in “anti-party activities in various meetings” and political discussions with Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and other party members.

Kwankwaso would later be expelled by the organisation for “failure to appear before the Disciplinary Committee”.

In addition, Kwankwaso was charged with “financial impropriety relating to the mismanagement of public funds” by the Aniebonam and Major group.

The Kano court, however, barred Aniebonam, Major, and 16 other respondents from impersonating party officials and set the case for October 5, 2023.