2027: APC may lose Zamfara — Prof Abubakar

Analyst warns Tinubu, Yari, Lawal over eight lawmakers’ exit

By Idris Salisu, Gusau

GUSAU — A political analyst, Prof. Abubakar Ahmed Abdullahi, has warned that the resignation of eight members of the Zamfara State House of Assembly from the All Progressives Congress could have serious political implications for the party ahead of the 2027 elections.

The lawmakers announced their resignation from the APC on Sunday, citing insecurity, alleged injustice, internal divisions and unpaid salaries and allowances. They include Aliyu Ango Kagara, Ibrahim Tukur Bakura, Faruk Musa Dosara, Bashir Abubakar Masama, Muktaru Nasiru Kaura, Nasiru Abdullahi, Bashar Bello and Bashar Aliyu.

Reacting to the development, Abdullahi said the lawmakers’ exit was a major setback for the APC in Zamfara and could affect the political fortunes of several party leaders, including President Bola Tinubu, former Governor Abdul’aziz Yari, Minister of State for Defence Bello Matawalle and Governor Dauda Lawal.

He said the development indicated that “all is not well” within the APC in the state, urging the party’s leaders to address their differences before the 2027 elections.

According to him, Governor Lawal should take responsibility for some of the political challenges confronting the state because of the powers attached to his office.

“Right from the time crisis broke in the state House of Assembly, the governor needed to call for calm and understanding but instead, he fuelled it for his own benefit,” he said.

Abdullahi alleged that attempts to reconcile the governor with the aggrieved lawmakers had failed, adding that the lawmakers and their constituencies had been neglected.

He also expressed concern over the rivalry between the camps of Yari and Matawalle, saying the division could complicate the APC’s preparations for 2027.

“If the camps that have been existing in favour of Yari on the one hand and in favour of Matawalle on the other is anything to go by, then the bigger picture is the trouble that lies ahead against Tinubu’s return in 2027,” he said.

The analyst further predicted that the APC could perform poorly in Zamfara in the 2027 presidential election if its leaders failed to resolve their differences.

“If care is not taken, I vividly foresee a Tinubu failing woefully in Zamfara State in the next election just because some few individuals refuse to do their part and responsibility to bring the needed results which they have always boasted of,” he said.

The resignation of the eight lawmakers cuts across the three senatorial districts of the state.

Five of them are from Zamfara West, the senatorial district represented by Yari. Among them is Kagara, who represents Talata Mafara South, Yari’s local government and a constituency considered politically significant to the former governor.

Another of the lawmakers, Ibrahim Tukur Bakura, represents Bakura, the home base of former Governor Ahmad Sani Yarima.

Faruk Dosara, representing Maradun I, is from Matawalle’s constituency, while Bashir Masama, representing Bukkuyum North, shares a political base with Deputy Governor Mani Malam Mumuni.

Bashar Aliyu, representing Gummi I, is from the constituency of APC Elders Committee Chairman Salihu Maibuhu Gummi.

In Zamfara Central, Nasiru Abdullahi, representing Maru North, also resigned, while Basiru Bello of Bungudu West was among the lawmakers who left the party.

Mukhtar Nasiru, representing Kaura Namoda North, resigned from Zamfara North.

Abdullahi said the development could affect the political calculations of several federal and state lawmakers whose political structures overlap with the constituencies represented by the defecting lawmakers.

The analyst also referred to the previous dispute involving the lawmakers and the leadership of the state House of Assembly.

The eight lawmakers had been suspended from the Assembly since February 2024. They have previously denied allegations of misconduct and maintained that their suspension was linked to their concerns over insecurity in their constituencies.

However, Speaker Bilyaminu Moriki said on Monday that the lawmakers were suspended over allegations of gross misconduct, conspiracy, mischief, contempt of the House and convening an unauthorised sitting in violation of the Assembly’s Standing Orders.

Moriki also alleged that the lawmakers broke into the offices of the Clerk and Sergeant-at-Arms, forcibly entered the legislative chamber and damaged public property before holding an unauthorised sitting. He said the Assembly extended their suspension in May 2026 because the disciplinary issues remained unresolved.

The lawmakers, however, have cited their welfare and the security situation in their constituencies as reasons for their resignation. Kagara alleged that they had gone 32 months without salaries, allowances and other entitlements.

Meanwhile, the Zamfara APC has said it had not formally received the lawmakers’ resignation letters, adding that it was awaiting official communication through their respective ward and local government structures.

Abdullahi urged Tinubu to intervene in the political crisis by bringing Yari, Matawalle and Lawal together for discussions aimed at resolving the divisions within the Zamfara APC.

“There is an urgent need for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene by summoning the three political gladiators in the state — Matawalle, Yari and Governor Dauda Lawal — to a roundtable on how to reorganise the Zamfara APC for victory,” he said.

He warned that failure to address the divisions, in his view, could affect the APC’s electoral performance in the state in 2027.

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