Musa Mohammed Rabiu Kwankwaso

Mohammed Rabi'u Musa Kwankwaso, FNSE FNIQS (born 21 October 1956) is a Nigerian politician who served as governor of Kano state from 1999 to 2003 and from 2011 to 2015. After he lost his re-election in 2003, he was appointed the first Minister of Defence of the Fourth Republic with no prior military background, from 2003 to 2007, under the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo. He was later elected to the Senate in 2015, serving one term under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) representing Kano Central Senatorial District. He currently serves as the national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party and holds a strong opposition bloc in Kano and many parts of Nigeria. Kwankwaso enjoys widespread support in Kano and north-western Nigeria; he has been viewed as a charismatic populist.

In 2011, he was re-elected governor of the state and went on to join the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2014. In 2015, Kwankwaso unsuccessfully contested the presidential primaries under the opposition of the All Progressives Congress but lost to Muhammadu Buhari. In 2018, he returned to the Peoples Democratic Party and contested the presidential primaries, losing to Atiku Abubakar. In 2023, Kwankwaso unsuccessfully ran for President of Nigeria under the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, receiving 6.23% of the vote.

Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was born on 21 October 1956 in Kano, to a Muslim family. His father held the position of the village head of Kwankwaso with the title of Sarkin Fulanin Kwankwaso before being elevated to the position of the District Head of Madobi with the title of Majidadin Kano, Hakimin Madobi by the Kano Emirate Council under the leadership of the 13th Fulani Emir of Kano Alhaji Ado Bayero CFR, LLD, JP. He attended Kwankwaso Primary School, Gwarzo Boarding Senior Primary School, Wudil Craft School, and Kano Technical College before proceeding to Kaduna Polytechnic where he did both his National Diploma and Higher National Diploma.

Kwankwaso was an active student leader during his school days and was an elected official of the Kano State Students Association. He also attended postgraduate studies in the United Kingdom from 1982 to 1983 at the Middlesex Polytechnic and Loughborough University of Technology, where he received a master's degree in civil engineering in 1985. He also earned a PhD in civil engineering from Sharda University in India in 2022.

Kwankwaso joined the Kano State Water Resources and Engineering Construction Agency of the Government of Kano State in 1975. He served there for seventeen years in various capacities, rising to become the principal water engineer. In 1992, he made his entry into politics on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He was a member of the People's Front faction of the SDP led by General Shehu Yar'adua and other prominent politicians.

In 1992, Kwankwaso was elected as a member of the House of Representatives representing Madobi Federal Constituency. His subsequent election as deputy speaker brought him to the national spotlight. During the 1995 Constitutional Conference, he was elected as one of the delegates from Kano, as a member of the People's Democratic Movement led by Yar'adua. He later joined the Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN) during the political transition program of General Sani Abacha.

Kwankwaso joined the PDP in 1998 under the platform of People's Democratic Movement in Kano led by Mallam Musa Gwadabe, Senator Hamisu Musa, and Alhaji Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila. In 1999, he contested the PDP primaries alongside Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Mukthari Zimit, and Ambassador Kabiru Rabiu Dansista. The party electoral committee declared Rabiu Kwankwaso as the winner of the primary election, leading to his election as governor of Kano State from 1999 to 2003.

During his first tenure as governor (1999 to 2003), he established the Kano University of Science and Technology in Wudil, the first state university in Kano at the time. In 2003, he lost re-election to Ibrahim Shekarau. From 2003 to 2007, Kwankwaso was appointed Minister of Defence by President Olusegun Obasanjo’s second cabinet, replacing Theophilus Danjuma. In 2007, he resigned his ministerial position to contest the Kano State governorship election but lost due to an indictment by a Government White Paper.

In 2011, he was re-elected for a second term as governor of Kano State from 2011 to 2015. During this period, he established the North West University, Kano, and introduced free school feeding and uniforms for primary school pupils, significantly increasing school enrolment. He also built numerous schools, infrastructure projects, and awarded scholarships to over 360,000 youth and women. Three flyover bridges, 5 km of dual-carriage roads, and improved drainage systems were constructed in Kano.

In August 2013, Kwankwaso was part of the G-7 faction within the PDP, which later defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in November 2013. In 2014, he contested the APC presidential primaries and endorsed Muhammadu Buhari. He faced a succession crisis with the Kano Emirate Council after the death of Emir Ado Bayero in June 2014, leading to protests and allegations of political influence.

In 2015, Kwankwaso unsuccessfully contested the presidential primaries under APC but lost to Muhammadu Buhari. He later joined the PDP in 2018 and contested the presidential primaries, coming fourth behind Atiku Abubakar. In 2022, he abandoned the PDP to join the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), becoming its national leader. In the 2023 presidential election, he secured fourth place with nearly 1.5 million votes.

Kwankwaso is known for his socially conservative and economically left-leaning views, inspired by Aminu Kano, a prominent socialist politician from Kano. His political career includes founding the Kwankwassiya movement, which focused on infrastructure, education, and youth empowerment. He established the Kwankwasiyya Development Foundation (KDF) to promote education and alleviate poverty in Kano and Nigeria. The foundation has supported scholarships for over 370 students, released inmates, and provided aid to the poor and needy.

Kwankwaso has also built schools, donated sports kits, and supported local sports development. Despite allegations of corruption, Kwankwaso has denied these claims, stating they are politically motivated. In 2020, he inaugurated a school in Rano Local Government, Kano, with a capacity for 300 pupils, solar-powered classrooms, and a block housing six classrooms. In 2004, a commission of inquiry into his activities as governor was established, and in 2015, the EFCC initiated an investigation into alleged pension fund misappropriation, though no convictions have been secured against him.