President Bola Tinubu has met eight suspended members of the Zamfara State House of Assembly who recently resigned from the All Progressives Congress, with the lawmakers reportedly reaffirming their support for his re-election bid ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The lawmakers were led to the Presidential Villa by the Minister of State for Defence and former Zamfara Governor, Bello Matawalle, an APC chieftain.
A statement issued on Monday by Matawalle’s Personal Assistant on Media, Ahmad Dan-Wudil, said the lawmakers pledged continued support for Tinubu and the APC.
Matawalle, according to the statement, promised to integrate them into the Tinubu Again Movement, a political platform expected to mobilise support for the President and other APC candidates in 2027.
The lawmakers are Aliyu Ango Kagara of Talata Mafara South; Ibrahim Tukur Bakura of Bakura; Faruk Musa Dosara of Maradun I; Bashir Abubakar Masama of Bukkuyum North; Muktaru Nasiru Kaura of Kaura North; Nasiru Abdullahi of Maru North; Bashar Bello of Bungudu West; and Bashar Aliyu of Gummi I.
Their meeting with Tinubu comes against the backdrop of a prolonged dispute with the state legislature. The eight lawmakers were suspended on February 26, 2024, over allegations of gross misconduct, conspiracy and holding an unauthorised sitting. The suspension was extended on May 13, 2026.
The Speaker of the Assembly, Bilyaminu Ismail Moriki, had said the disciplinary action predated the lawmakers’ political decisions.
In their resignation letters from the APC, the lawmakers cited alleged injustice, disunity among party stakeholders and concerns over the handling of insecurity in Zamfara.
APC chieftain Sani Shinkafi also clarified that five of the lawmakers were elected in 2023 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party before defecting to the APC, while the remaining three won their seats on the APC platform.
Shinkafi dismissed claims linking the lawmakers to Senator Abdul’aziz Yari, describing such reports as “mischievous and sponsored”.
