Abdulmumin Jibrin has announced his defection from the ruling All Progressive Congress, although the campaign chief for Bola Tinubu has yet to announce his next political party.
“I have done my best for APC,” Mr Jibrin said on Twitter Saturday. “It’s time to move on. I will announce my new political party within the next 24 hours insha Allah. I will make a formal statement in due course.”
The former House of Representatives appropriation committee chairman has been leading support groups for Mr. Tinubu across northern Nigeria. It was not immediately clear why he decided to leave the ruling party, but concerns have mounted in recent weeks that the APC might allow northern candidates to contest its ticket.
Mr Jibrin has argued that southern candidates should be given exclusive rights to contest the presidential ticket in line with equity, but northern APC politicians, including Jigawa Governor Abubakar Badaru, have declared their readiness to seek the 2023 presidential ticket.