Former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has expressed regret over his failure to work with Peter Obi during the 2023 general elections, saying he would have joined forces with the former Anambra State governor to stop the All Progressives Congress (APC) if he had known him better at the time.
Kwankwaso, who is now the vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), made the remarks in Dutse, Jigawa State, during the presentation of certificates of return to some party candidates for the 2027 elections.
He said his interactions with Obi had shown him that they shared similar views, particularly on education and human development, which he described as key areas of his administration in Kano State.
The former governor said he believed they could have worked together in 2023 to prevent the APC from retaining power.
He described the ruling party as one whose policies, in his view, had continued to worsen the hardship faced by Nigerians.
At the event, certificates of return were presented to several NDC candidates, including Babangida Haruna, the party’s deputy governorship candidate; Sabo Gaske, its Jigawa North-West senatorial candidate; Engr. Sa’id Hassan Muhammad, who is contesting the Ringim/Taura Federal Constituency seat; and 31 state assembly candidates.
Kwankwaso congratulated the candidates on their emergence from the party primaries, describing them as fresh faces who had not been involved in questionable activities.
He said the country had fallen behind in development while millions of children remained out of school and struggled to meet their basic needs.
“Nigeria is blessed with abundance of natural resources but because of lack of education among the majority of our people, the few people who have the privilege of going to school have decided to corner virtually all the resources of the people to the benefit of their families and cronies,” he said.
Kwankwaso also recalled his administration’s foreign scholarship programme in Kano, through which more than 3,000 students reportedly received opportunities to study abroad.
He said he had presented the programme’s blueprint to the party’s leadership, adding that Obi had implemented a similar initiative during his time as governor of Anambra State.
“Our intention is that, I showed them what we did in Kano and they agreed, he (Obi) did a similar thing in Anambra, under no condition will the son of a common man be left out, we’ll fix classrooms, recruit qualified teachers, fix primary, secondary and tertiary institutions just like we sent over 3,000 scholars to other parts of the world,” he said.
The former governor maintained that his administration achieved the scholarship programme without borrowing from domestic or foreign banks, claiming that it was made possible by blocking avenues for corruption.
He said the NDC intended to adopt similar measures at the national level if elected into power.
Kwankwaso also urged Nigerians, particularly residents of Jigawa State and young voters, not to take the 2027 elections lightly.
He criticised members of the National Assembly for allegedly supporting policies and bills presented by President Bola Tinubu without adequately considering their effects on ordinary Nigerians.
He specifically faulted lawmakers over the passage of the tax reform bills, claiming that some members supported the process despite concerns about its possible consequences.
“The worst part of it is that the session for the approval of the tax bill was chaired by one of us from Kano. Even the Senate President intentionally refused to attend because he did not want to be part of it,” he said.
Kwankwaso further alleged that the Federal Government delayed implementing the new tax measures because of concerns about the 2027 elections.
“The bill has been passed into law, but the Federal Government is now afraid of losing the election. That is why it has delayed the collection.
“As soon as they get a second chance, God forbid, Nigerians will suffer from different kinds of tax collection. They will start going from house to house, checking even under your bed to collect taxes,” he added.
Meanwhile, the NDC governorship candidate in Jigawa State, Dr Aminu Musa Dutse, promised to reform the state’s administration if elected in 2027.
Dutse identified the condition of pensioners as one of the major issues requiring urgent attention, promising to improve their welfare.
He also pledged to revive the education sector, which he described as being in a poor state, saying residents needed a new direction to improve access to quality education.
