More than 300 leaders and officials of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Albasu Local Government Area of Kano State have petitioned Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf. They accuse the council chairman and their lawmaker at the state assembly of backing a rival senatorial candidate ahead of the 2027 elections.
The petitioners want the governor and the APC State Working Committee to investigate the local government chairman, Garba Aliyu Hungu, and Musa Tahir Hungu, who represents Albasu Constituency in the Kano State House of Assembly.
At the centre of the dispute is Kasim Ibrahim Bataiya, the New Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for Kano South Senatorial District. The petitioners accuse the two officials of associating with him and supporting him politically, even though the APC is backing Senator Kawu Sumaila. They allege that the relationship predates the officials’ emergence on the APC platform, and that Bataiya once helped them secure their political tickets.
They also claim that some APC councillors, political appointees and local government party officials have attended Bataiya’s activities, including campaign rallies, and encouraged support for his ambition. They further allege that the Albasu Local Government town hall was used for political meetings and the launch of his senatorial campaign, with the chairman providing the venue.
According to the petition, a fact-finding committee led by Dr Yunusa Adamu Dangwani was set up to examine the allegations, but the two officials allegedly prevented it from doing its work.
The petitioners’ grievances go beyond the senatorial race. They accuse the local government leadership of failing to organise meetings with members of the APC legacy group, despite directives they say came from the governor and party leadership. A meeting was held through the intervention of the House of Representatives member for Albasu, Gaya and Ajingi Federal Constituency, but later attempts allegedly failed.
They also allege that some government empowerment benefits meant for APC members were diverted to people loyal to the NDC candidate, and they want greater accountability in how such programmes are run. On mobilisation, they say Albasu provided only 17 buses for the APC presidential campaign flag-off in Kaduna, while other local governments reportedly deployed at least 30. They further claim the current Amirul Hajj still takes part in NDC activities, although he retired from public service about two years ago and has not been replaced.
The stakeholders asked for the matter to be examined under Article 21 of the APC constitution, which they cited in their call for possible disciplinary action. They stressed, however, that the two officials should be invited to respond before any decision is made, and that the allegations should be tested through an impartial investigation backed by verifiable evidence.
The petition was signed by Hon. Adamu Abdu Fanda, Caucus Chairman; Hon. Wada Ibrahim Daho, Caucus Secretary; former Kano State House of Assembly member Hon. Sunusi Usman Bataiya; Isyaka Danyaya, Albasu APC Deputy Chairman; and other ward and local government officials.
Efforts to reach Garba Aliyu Hungu and Musa Tahir Hungu for comment were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report. The allegations remain unverified, and no wrongdoing has been established against either official.