TheCable

Bashir Bashir, the governorship candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in Kano state, has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

A federal high court in Kano had, in January, affirmed the nomination of Bashir Bashir as the LP governorship candidate in the state.

The court had also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise and list Bashir and his running mate, Auwalu Abdullahi, as the party’s candidates in Kano.

An associate of Bashir told TheCable under condition of anonymity, on Sunday night, that the major reason for the defection was the “exclusion of major northern stakeholders in the decision-making process of the party’s campaign”.

The associate also said another reason for the defection was the “lack of clear direction on the interest of northern Nigeria”.

Bashir was said to have held meetings with Bola Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate, as well as Kashim Shettima, the running mate to Tinubu.

The meetings reportedly held in Lagos and Abuja, where agreement was said to have been reached on the terms of defection.

Bashir reportedly promised to mobilise his supporters to vote for the APC presidential candidate.

Meanwhile, during the LP presidential campaign rally in Kano in January, Bashir had boycotted the event.

The development also comes days after Yusuf Tsoho, the LP governorship candidate in Jigawa, defected to the APC.