Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a prominent political figure in Kano State and a key voice in northern Nigerian politics, has taken aim at President Bola Tinubu’s administration, accusing it of unfairly favoring the southern part of the country in the allocation of national resources.
Speaking at the Kano State Stakeholders’ Dialogue on the 2025 Constitutional Amendment on Thursday, the former Kano State governor criticized what he described as a troubling pattern of resource concentration.
“Let me advise the Federal Government on the distribution of federal resources,” Kwankwaso said during the event.
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“From the information available to us, it’s like most of the national budget is now tilting in one direction in this country.”
The New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) chieftain, who contested the 2023 presidential election, accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of disproportionately allocating federal resources, with the northern region allegedly receiving the short end of the stick.“
Let me advise those who are struggling by all means to take everything to remember that some of the issues that we have in this part of the country today have to do with the lack of enough resources and mismanagement of the little that comes in,” he said.
“That is why we have insecurity, we have poverty and so on. It is happening here mainly, but like a desert, it would go everywhere.”
Kwankwaso, a former Governor of Kano State lamented the poor condition of infrastructure in the North, particularly the deplorable state of the roads he personally experienced during a recent road journey from Abuja to Kano.
“Yesterday, I was to come by air, but unfortunately, my airline decided to shift our takeoff from 3pm to 8pm. I had to come by road. From Abuja to Kaduna to Kano was a hell. Terrible. Very bad road. This is a road started many years ago, right from the beginning of the leadership of the APC,” he noted.
He drew a contrast with infrastructure investments in the southern and eastern regions, calling for balanced development across all parts of the country.
“Now, we are told that there is a road from the South to the East. We support infrastructure anywhere in this country…and any other thing that is good for the masses but a situation where government is taking our resources and dumping it in one part of the country and other parts of the country are left just like that, I don’t believe that is the right thing to do by the government itself,” Kwankwaso added.
Calling for a change in approach, he urged the current administration to prioritize equity and inclusiveness in its governance and budgetary decisions.
“This is the time for the government to change, to convince our people that the government is not just on one side of the country,” he concluded.
With less than two years to the next general elections, political observers believe Kwankwaso is reemerging as a significant player on the national stage. His influence, particularly in the North-West, remains strong, with his Kwankwasiyya movement commanding widespread loyalty among voters.
His recent meeting with President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa has sparked speculation about potential alliances, especially as opposition forces—led by figures like Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi—coalesce under new platforms such as the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, the North has consistently delivered large voter turnouts, making it a critical battleground in any presidential race.
Kano State, in particular, has held strategic electoral importance.
In the 2023 presidential election, Kano produced about 1.7 million votes. Kwankwaso dominated the state with 997,279 votes under the NNPP, while Tinubu received 517,341 votes. Atiku and Obi trailed behind with 131,716 and 28,513 votes respectively. Kwankwaso won in 38 of the 44 local government areas in the state.
Nationally, Kwankwaso garnered 1,496,687 votes in the 2023 polls, placing fourth behind Tinubu (8,794,726), Atiku (6,984,520), and Obi (6,101,533).
Currently, the NNPP retains control of the Kano governorship through Kwankwaso’s political protégé, Abba Kabir Yusuf. However, the APC still holds sway in two of the state’s three senatorial districts, ensuring that Kano remains a politically competitive landscape.
As preparations begin for the 2027 elections, Kwankwaso’s rhetoric and rising engagements signal that he is not only positioning himself as a northern advocate but also as a potential kingmaker—or contender—once again.
