A former Kano State governor and senator who represented Kano South in the 9th National Assembly, Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya, has lost his bid to return to the Senate on the platform of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Gaya, who recently joined the NDC after leaving the All Progressives Congress and the African Democratic Congress, had sought the party’s ticket to contest the Kano South senatorial seat in the 2027 election.
He, however, lost the ticket to a former Chairman of the National Association of Road Transport Owners, Alkasim Ibrahim Batayya.
The Spokesperson II of Kwankwasiyya, Mansur Kurugu, confirmed that Batayya emerged through a consensus arrangement held on Sunday at the Miller Road, Kano residence of former Kano State governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.
Kurugu said Gaya had accepted the outcome of the consensus process and pledged to work for Batayya’s victory in the election.
He said, “Kabiru Gaya has already accepted the decision and has promised to give his maximum support for Batayya to win the seat.”
According to him, the consensus meeting will continue on Monday until all the seats are decided without necessarily proceeding to direct primaries.
A video of Gaya was also shared by Kwankwaso’s media aide, Saifullahi Hassan, in a Facebook post.
In the video, the former senator was seen endorsing the decision and pledging support for the party’s chosen candidate.
The development is seen as a major political setback for Gaya, who served in the Senate from 2015 to 2023.
Gaya also served as governor of Kano State during the Third Republic and has remained one of the prominent politicians from Kano South.
NewsWatch Nigeria reports that with his emergence as the NDC candidate, Batayya is expected to face Kawu Sumaila, who defeated him in the 2023 senatorial election.
Sumaila won the seat in 2023 on the platform of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) but has since defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), where he secured the party’s 2027 ticket.
