Former Governor of Kano State and leader of the Kwakwasiya movement, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the way the Federal Government’s rice palliative distribution was handled in his home state of Kano.
In a post on his official X account (formerly Twitter), the prominent political leader voiced his concerns about the alleged exclusion of the Kano State Government in the palliative distribution process.
Kwankwaso lamented that while rice palliatives were distributed to 35 states across the federation through their respective governors, Kano’s allocation was handed over to key members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) instead of the state government.
Read Also: River Basins: 100 Civil Society Groups Commend Minister Utsev’s Innovative Approach
He described this as an affront to constitutional democracy and a dangerous display of partisanship.
“For the last one week, I have been in Kano, and sadly I noted with great disappointment the Federal Government’s distribution of rice palliatives to 35 states through their governors, except Kano State. Kano’s share was handed over to APC stalwarts to handle. This is a gross insult to our constitutional democracy and driving partisanship too far,” Kwankwaso wrote.
He went on to call on President Bola Tinubu to intervene immediately, warning that the current approach was undermining democracy.
Kwankwaso’s critique also extended to the rapid changes in the leadership of the Department of State Services (DSS) in Kano, with three different state directors being posted and reposted in the span of two weeks.
These comments come amidst media reports regarding the Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jubril, also from Kano, who recently flagged off the distribution of 19 truckloads of rice palliatives to all 44 local government areas in the state. Senator Jubril, a member of the ruling APC, attributed the economic hardship in Nigeria to global events like the Ukraine-Russia war, which he said had severely impacted food security.
“The federal government, under President Bola Tinubu, remains committed to alleviating the difficulties Nigerians are facing, particularly in rural and urban areas,” Senator Jubril said during the distribution ceremony. He added that the restructuring of the palliative distribution was meant to ensure that aid reached the grassroots, addressing lapses in the initial process.
Kwankwaso’s criticisms, however, have raised concerns about the increasing politicization of humanitarian efforts and the deepening divide between political factions in Kano State.
As the debate continues, many Kano residents are left questioning the fairness of the palliative distribution and the political undertones surrounding it. Kwankwaso’s call for intervention has added another layer of complexity to the situation, drawing attention to the broader issue of how federal aid is managed in politically sensitive areas.