Governor Yusuf And Sen. Kwankwaso,

Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State has suspended Ibrahim Rabi’u, a Senior Special Reporter (SSR) assigned to the Ministry of Transportation, for making what officials called “unguarded” remarks about Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

The suspension, announced Saturday by Secretary to the State Government Alhaji Umar Farouk Ibrahim, takes immediate effect.

In addition, the aide is to receive a formal query over the comments described as inflammatory.

A statement from the governor’s spokesperson, Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, said the administration “has distanced itself from the purported claim,” stressing that the remarks were “solely coming from the author for reasons best known to him.”

The release also reminded officials that “only the Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Comrade Ibrahim Wayya, is authorized to speak on behalf of the government, while the Director General, Media and Publicity, Sanusi Bature, speaks for the governor.”

It cautioned all political appointees against making “unauthorized comments, especially outside their jurisdiction,” adding, “Any political appointee must get clearance before making public comments on issues that have to do with the position of the government on matters of public importance or of sensitive political decisions.”

North-West leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have thrown their weight behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as their choice for the 2027 presidential race, issuing a vote of confidence after a high-level stakeholders’ meeting in Kaduna on Saturday.

Present were all seven governors from the zone, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Deputy Senate President, former governors, the APC national chairman, state party chairmen, federal and state lawmakers, ministers, agency heads and other senior appointees.

Reading the communiqué, APC North-West Coordinating Governor Senator Uba Sani said the zone “reaffirmed its loyalty to the APC and pledged full support for President Tinubu’s vision to deliver prosperity, equity, and lasting change for all Nigerians.”

“We thank and commend President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his purposeful leadership, bold reforms, and unwavering commitment to Nigeria’s progress, especially in the North West zone,” he declared.

“Under President Tinubu, security in the North West has significantly improved, enabling farmers to return to their fields and communities to regain peace and stability.”

The communiqué added that the region now enjoys “unprecedented federal representation with 12 ministers, key National Assembly positions, and top security appointments, a clear sign of inclusiveness and recognition.”

It also cited “major infrastructure projects… being completed or underway across the North West, marking a new era of development.”

The gathering concluded that “APC continues to grow in strength, unity, and national appeal, due to Nigerians’ appreciation of the President and our APC governors.”

Governor Umo Eno has placed members of Akwa Ibom State’s Executive Council on notice: any commissioner who ignores the governor’s movement or skips protocol will be sacked on the spot.

During an impromptu visit to the Judiciary Village construction site in Uyo on Friday, Eno voiced irritation at what he called a growing habit of “disregard for official procedures” among his aides.

“That’s like four commissioners and I’ve not found them. Starting today, I (would) like everyone to hear, when they hear that I fired the commissioner in your local government, it is insubordination,” he said.

Lamenting that key officials often disappear after escorting him to events, Eno reminded the cabinet that accompanying and returning the governor safely is part of their core duty:

“It is wrong for the governor to go on an appointment if nobody else follows him. My commissioners, special advisers are members of my first 11, and I do not announce where I will go.

“It is mandatory for my commissioners to ensure that they take me back to the office or the lodge because, if I stop by anywhere, there can be issues that will be raised.”

He continued “A situation where we go to a place, I leave the place, commissioners take off to what I don’t know, this is a full-time job. So, if any commissioner is busy doing their thing, they are not yet ready to be commissioners.

“I was a commissioner myself; I never left my governor behind. Today is the last day I make this statement, and I’m doing it publicly.”

“Anytime I leave an event, I stop by anywhere, let the commissioner pray that I don’t look for that commissioner. If I look for that commissioner, the commissioner is not there, the commissioner will lose his or her job right there and then.”

Multiple party officials and close allies of Mr Peter Obi say the 2023 presidential flag-bearer of the Labour Party (LP) is preparing to announce his departure within days, DAILY GAZETTE can report.

Sources told our correspondent that Mr Obi has grown increasingly frustrated with what he calls “entrenched factionalism” in the party’s National Working Committee and the protracted legal battle between Barr Julius Abure and Senator Nenadi Usman.

“The endless litigation has paralysed our organising machinery and betrayed the promise of a genuine third force,” a confidant quoted Obi as saying during a private strategy session in Lagos on Saturday.

According to two officials at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mr Obi’s legal team this week requested certified guidelines for registering a new political association, an initial step toward full party registration.

Talks are said to be well advanced with the National Consultative Front (NCFront), several youth-led pressure groups, and a handful of disaffected lawmakers currently in the LP, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP).

Insiders say the working name for the platform is Progress Nigeria Movement, although that could change before registration.

Speaking to DAILY GAZETTE over the phone, Labour Party National Chairman, Barr. Julius Abure insisted the door remained open for reconciliation:

“We fought side by side in 2023, and we can still resolve any misgivings. We have asked Mr Obi to reconsider and help us reposition the party rather than walk away.”

Members of the Apapa faction, however, welcomed the prospect of Obi’s exit, claiming it would “restore ideological clarity.”

Mr Obi’s spokesperson, Dr Yunusa Tanko, neither confirmed nor denied the imminent defection:

“What I can tell you is that His Excellency remains committed to building a credible alternative that places Nigerians first. We will communicate definitive steps very soon.”

Analysts say a fresh party could upend early calculations for the next presidential cycle, particularly if the new bloc secures a merger with Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s supporters or other regional kingmakers.

“Obi still commands the youth vote in the South-East and major urban centres,” noted political scientist Dr. Zainab Okoye.

“If he couples that with cross-regional endorsements, the ruling APC and the PDP will face a true three-horse race.”

Tony Cole, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Rivers State’s 2023 election, has argued that Nigeria’s U.S-style presidential model is unsuited to the country’s realities.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Cole contended that Nigeria’s current political architecture “was designed to be hijacked by a few people,” insisting that flaws in the system must be confronted head-on.

“This American system that is called the presidential system in Nigeria we need to go and address it,” he declared.

“We cannot import a parliamentary system from the UK and work here. We cannot import a presidential system; it will not work here as in every African country.”

“Are we satisfied with the system and democracy we adapted? No, because it is contrary to who we are.”

Cole maintained that the framework “can be easily exploited by a few” because Nigeria has “not built institutions you can hold accountable,” noting that those institutions are “modelled along the British system” which, he emphasized, “is not our system.”

Turning to foreign policy, he urged the country’s leaders to reposition Nigeria as a forceful, self-assured negotiator on the international stage. “You should do two clear things.

“First of all, position Nigeria as a serious negotiator on the table,” he said. “One thing we must understand is that, if Nigeria gets it right, not only the sub-region, the whole of Africa will begin to pay attention.”

“So Nigeria commands influence. But when you are commanding influence, you don’t go begging. So, you have a clear issue of what is good for us.”