Abdullahi Ganduje on Friday resigned his position as the National Chairman of the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, with immediate effect citing health grounds. His resignation has however being followed by mixed reactions.
Now let’s tell you some more of the things we know about Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.
Abdulahi Ganduje joined the National Party of Nigeria and served as the Kano state assistant secretary from 1979 to 1980. He contested for the House of Representatives on the platform of the NPN in 1979 but lost
Dr. Ganduje held various positions within the Federal Capital Development Authority between 1984 and 1994.
In 1994, he moved on to become the Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transport in kano state.
In the build up to the return of democracy, Dr. Ganduje joined the Peoples Democratic Party in 1998. He lost his first attempt at contesting for the state governorship to Rabiu Kwankwaso, whom he later served as deputy governor between 1999 and 2003.
They returned to complete their governorship tenure from 2011 to 2015. Dr. Ganduje himself contested and won the governorship of Kano state on the platform of the APC in 2015 and served for two terms till 2023.
Abdullahi Ganduje’s reputation was threatened In October 2018 when video clips reportedly recorded by spy camera were published by an online media, alleging that the governor received wads of dollar notes as kickback from a contractor. An allegation he has continued to deny.
The history of his tenure as governor will be incomplete without mentioning the series of clashes he had with his former boss, Rabiu Kwankwaso who he accused of overbearing godfatherism.
He will also be remembered for splitting the Kano emirates into five in 2019. He went ahead to depose the then Emir Sanusi over allegation of insubordination and disrespect to lawful instructions from the office of the Governor”
On the 3rd of August 2023, Dr. Ganduje became the National Chairman of the APC, after the resignation of Mr. Abdullahi Adamu.
He survived the first attempt to remove him as chairman of the party when in September 2024, Justice Inyang Ekwo, of the Federal High Court in Abuja, dismissed a suit filed by the North Central APC Forum and led by Saleh Zazzaga.
Dr. Ganduje appeared to be in firm control of the party until the 15th of June this year, during a stakeholder’s meeting of the APC in the North East. While the party unanimously endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term, his presence did not mask the division among the various interests in the region.
