Kabiru Gaya loses Kano NDC senatorial ticket

The former Senator who represented Kano South, Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya, has lost his bid to return to the Red Chamber under the platform of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) ahead of the 2027 general elections. Gaya, who recently defected to the NDC after previous stints with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the African Democratic […]

The former Senator who represented Kano South, Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya, has lost his bid to return to the Red Chamber under the platform of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Gaya, who recently defected to the NDC after previous stints with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), had sought a return to the Senate.
However, he lost the party ticket to the former National Chairman of the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Alkasim Ibrahim Batayya.
The Spokesperson II of the Kwankwasiyya movement, Mansur Kurugu, confirmed that Batayya emerged as the candidate through a consensus meeting held at the Miller Road, Kano residence of Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso on Sunday.
“Kabiru Gaya has already accepted the decision and has promised to give his maximum support for Batayya to win the seat,” Kurugu added.
He noted that the consensus meetings would continue on Monday until candidates for all remaining seats are decided, bypassing the need for primary elections.
A video of Kabiru Gaya was also shared by Kwankwaso’s media aide, Saifullahi Hassan, via a Facebook post, in which the former Senator was seen endorsing the decision.
The outcome represents a major political setback for Gaya, who served in the Senate from 2007 to 2023 and previously governed Kano State during the Third Republic.
Batayya is now set to battle with the incumbent, Kawu Sumaila, who defeated Gaya in 2023 on the platform of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP). Sumaila has since defected to the APC and has already been confirmed as the party’s candidate ahead of the 2027 election.