Loyalists of former Kano State governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, were conspicuously absent as Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf made his first public appearance since reports emerged of moves for his defection from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC)
The governor resurfaced on Sunday at the graduation ceremony and the distribution of empowerment packages to 2,260 beneficiaries from various state-run institutions.
According to Bellnews, the governor had been out of public view for more than a week and was reportedly in Abuja during that time.
The beneficiaries at the graduation ceremony were from the Film Institute, Poultry Institute, Livestock Institute, Driving Institute, Fisheries Institute, Horticulture Institute, Informatics Institute and Development Journalism Institute. The event took place at the Open Space Theatre, Government House, Kano.
At the event, the embattled NNPP state chairman and an ally of Kwankwaso, Hashim Sulaiman Dungurawa, was noticeably absent, while Zubairu Abiya, who emerged as a loyalist of the governor, was in attendance and officially acknowledged as the new chairman of the party.
It was also observed that key loyalists of Kwankwaso, who are reportedly opposed to the reported defection, were absent.
They include the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Mustapha Rabiu Kwankwaso; the Commissioner for Science, Technology and Innovation, Yusuf Kofar Mata; the Commissioner for Internal Security, AVM Ibrahim Umar (rtd); and the Head of Service, Abdullahi Musa.
In contrast, several commissioners, local government chairmen, members of the Kano State House of Assembly and other political appointees attended the event.
Also present were the Speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly, Ismail Jibril Falgore, and the Secretary to the State Government, Umar Farouk Ibrahim.
Although the governor avoided any political statement during his speech, the aforementioned publication observed heightened tension among some party supporters at the venue, with groups stationed at the entrance of the theatre expressing anger over the unfolding political developments.
“Whoever among them comes here will live to remember what we will do to him. They dare not come here, betrayers,” a leader of one of the groups was heard saying, as others echoed support.