Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, is reportedly set to meet with President Bola Tinubu on Thursday amid growing concerns over his political future following a wave of defections from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.
The governor’s planned visit to the Presidential Villa comes barely 24 hours after another PDP lawmaker, Hon. Faru, representing Maradun II Constituency, defected to the APC. This latest defection adds to a growing list of high-profile exits from the ruling party in the state.
Only last week, another PDP stalwart who reportedly received over ₦4 billion support from the governor during a by-election announced his defection to the APC, citing poor governance and mounting disaffection among Zamfara residents with Lawal’s administration.
Political observers say the string of defections has left Governor Lawal’s re-election prospects hanging in the balance, as the APC continues to consolidate power in the state legislature. The opposition party currently controls 13 of the 24 seats in the State House of Assembly, while no fewer than seven more lawmakers are said to be on the verge of defecting to the APC.
If the defection trend continues, the governor could be left with as few as four loyal legislators, a scenario that would not only weaken his control over the legislature but also expose him to possible impeachment.
A source familiar with the development disclosed that the governor held a closed-door meeting with several lawmakers in Gusau on Tuesday night, during which he expressed deep concern over the growing instability within the PDP.
According to the source, Lawal admitted that the defections had created political uncertainty for his administration, saying he feared that his chances of returning as governor were slipping away. He was also quoted as telling the lawmakers that even if he lost power, he would “have no regrets,” as he had “international options” to fall back on.
“He said he owns properties in London, Dubai, the United States, and Germany, and that he could easily relocate if the political environment becomes too hostile,” the source claimed.
Party insiders say the governor’s meeting with President Tinubu is intended to explore “political reconciliation” and possibly negotiate a soft landing amid fears that the defection wave could completely erode his influence ahead of the next election cycle.
Efforts to reach the governor’s spokesperson for comments were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.
The Zamfara political climate has been tense in recent weeks, with mounting criticism over what opposition figures describe as Lawal’s “underperformance” in key sectors such as security, education, and infrastructure.
𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗧𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 𝗔𝘀 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽!
