A Kano State High Court has invalidated the dissolution of the New Nigeria Peoples Party's executive councils in the state, restoring the status quo and affirming Abdullahi Abiya's leadership amid an internal crisis.
The internal crisis within the Kwankwasiyya faction of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Kano escalated when the party's National Working Committee (NWC) dissolved all state, local government, and ward executive structures last week. This followed the suspension of state chairman Hon. Hashim Dungurawa, who was replaced in an acting capacity by Abdullahi Abiya, a loyalist to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
On Tuesday, January 6, 2026, Justice Nasiru Saminu of the Kano State High Court granted an ex parte order in suit No. K/06/2026, filed by Abdullahi Zubairu Imam and five others on behalf of the 44 local government area executives. The court restrained the NWC from further actions on the leadership, mandating maintenance of the status quo as of December 30, 2025, before the dissolution.
The court order stated: “An order of interim injunction restraining the Defendant/Respondent... from appointing Caretaker Committees... or taking any further step... pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice.” It also allowed service of the suit on the party's national secretariat in Abuja. The case is adjourned to February 10, 2026.
The dispute originated from Dungurawa's public opposition to reports of Governor Yusuf's potential defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC), which he called a 'betrayal of trust.' His suspension came from his Gargari Ward in Dawakin-Tofa LGA, citing instigation of division and non-payment of dues. The state executive then endorsed Abiya's appointment at an emergency meeting, in line with the party constitution.
