 to install former Kano State Governor, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau.){kind=link}
Moves within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to install former Kano State Governor, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, as its next national chairman have unsettled the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition.
The development comes as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) advances the registration of the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), raising the possibility of a fresh platform for opposition forces ahead of the 2027 elections.
Before ADC was chosen as the coalition’s political vehicle, Shekarau and Umar Ardo of the League of Northern Democrats had pushed for ADA’s registration to avoid internal wrangling and questions of legitimacy.
But Yau Sule Yau clarified that Shekarau was never part of the coalition.
He said the former governor criticised the process, noting that while he supports political collaboration to improve governance, he has remained a committed PDP member.
ADA is one of 14 associations that scaled through INEC’s latest screening round. Meanwhile, the PDP Governors’ Forum, under the leadership of Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, has adopted Shekarau as consensus candidate for national chairman ahead of the party’s November 15–16 convention in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The move has received the backing of former President Goodluck Jonathan and Labour Party’s 2023 presidential flag bearer, Peter Obi, following a recent meeting in Abuja.
A close associate of both men disclosed that they exchanged views on the unfolding political realignments and lauded Mohammed’s efforts to steady the PDP and “wean it away from betrayals” that have dogged it in recent years.
“The former president re-echoed his concerns about betrayals. He was not happy that some politicians derive pleasure in creating false narratives just to feather their political caps.
“He expressed relief that a former Kano state governor, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, is being approached to preside over the affairs of the PDP,” the source told Guardian.