Abba Kabir Yusuf, a Nigerian politician, has recently achieved a historic win as the governor-elect of Kano State, under the banner of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), defeating his closest rival Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, the current deputy governor of Kano State and a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Here are some facts about Abba Kabir Yusuf that you may not know:
1. He was born on 5th January 1963 in Gaya Local Government Area of Kano State.
2. He is the son-in-law of Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State and a leader of NNPP .
3. He has a master’s degree in business administration from Bayero University Kano and a higher national diploma in civil engineering from Kaduna Polytechnic.
4. He served as the Commissioner of Works, Housing and Transport in Kano State from 2011 to 2015 under Kwankwaso’s administration.
5. He contested for the governorship seat in 2019 under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) but lost to Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of APC after a controversial supplementary election. He challenged the result in court but his case was dismissed at all levels.
6. He switched to NNPP after PDP denied him its ticket for the 2023 election and emerged as its flagbearer with Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo as his running mate .
7. He won the governorship election with 1,019,602 votes against Gawuna’s 890,705 votes according to INEC . This makes him the first NNPP governor-elect in Nigeria’s history.
8. He is from the Sullubawa part of Genawa Clan of the Fulani ethnic group and has ancestral links to Sarkin Kano Abdullahi Maje Karofi and Galadiman Zazzau Malam Ahmadu on his paternal and maternal sides respectively.
9. He is married to Hajiya Maryam Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and they have four children together: Muhammad Kabiru Abba Yusuf, Fatima Abba Yusuf, Aisha Abba Yusuf and Khadija Abba Yusuf.
Abba Kabir Yusuf has promised to deliver good governance, security, education, health care and infrastructure development to the people of Kano State if sworn in as governor on May 29th 2023.