Former Senator Shehu Sani has explained his decision to return to the All Progressives Congress (APC) after leaving the party in 2018.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Hard Copy, a Channels Television program, Sani stated that the political circumstances that led to his exit have changed, paving the way for his return.<\/p>\n
Sani, who previously represented Kaduna Central in the Senate, resigned from the APC in 2018 following disagreements over the party\u2019s primaries.<\/p>\n
He later joined the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and contested for a Senate seat in 2019 but lost to Uba Sani, now the Governor of Kaduna State.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Friday, the former senator noted that he had reconciled with key political stakeholders in Kaduna, leading to his return to the ruling party.<\/p>\n
\u201cA circumstance led to our mass exit from the APC in 2018, and that circumstance has changed, so we have rejoined the party in Kaduna State,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Sani emphasized that he was among the founding members of the APC in Kaduna, having played a role in building the party\u2019s structures and securing electoral victories in 2015.<\/p>\n
However, he parted ways with former Governor Nasir El-Rufai due to political and personal differences, as well as concerns over governance in the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had to leave the party back then, but now we have a new governor who has reached out to us,\u201d Sani explained. \u201cHe has been making efforts to unite different factions, and after discussions, we agreed to return to the party we helped build.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sani, along with several PDP and New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) members, officially joined the APC on February 16 in Kaduna.<\/p>\n
Criticism of El-Rufai\u2019s Leadership<\/b><\/p>\n
The former senator also blamed El-Rufai for APC\u2019s poor performance in Kaduna during the 2023 presidential election. Atiku Abubakar of the PDP secured 554,360 votes in the state, defeating APC\u2019s Bola Tinubu, who garnered 399,293 votes. Labour Party\u2019s Peter Obi finished third with 294,494 votes.<\/p>\n
Sani accused El-Rufai of failing to unite the party in Kaduna, leading to significant electoral setbacks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe former governor is disgruntled and pained\u2014this is part of the crisis of entitlement and expectations,\u201d he said. \u201cNasir was governor for eight years but couldn\u2019t deliver Kaduna to Tinubu. The numbers speak for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
He further noted that under El-Rufai\u2019s leadership, APC lost all three senatorial seats in Kaduna to the PDP. Out of 14 House of Representatives seats, PDP won nine, Labour Party secured two, while APC managed to win only three.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe also claims to have brought Uba Sani to office, but the numbers tell a different story,\u201d Sani argued. \u201cPDP\u2019s Isa Ashiru got 719,000 votes, while Uba Sani had 730,000\u2014a margin of just 11,000 votes. Kaduna didn\u2019t vote for Uba because of Nasiru; in fact, Uba lost votes because of him.\u201d<\/p>\n
He accused the former governor of undermining Uba Sani\u2019s campaign while publicly claiming to support him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was someone who campaigned for Uba on one hand while ridiculing him on the other,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Sani also recalled that several high-profile APC figures, including Aminu Masari, Segun Oni, Inua Abdulquadri, and John Oyegun, were sent to mediate the internal crisis in Kaduna, but El-Rufai refused to engage with them.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis refusal to reconcile with APC forces in Kaduna caused major losses. If he truly believes in reconciliation, why didn\u2019t he practice it in his own state?\u201d Sani concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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