For the Sokoto State chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), managing victory appears to be its major challenge. Against all odds, the party snatched victory from the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, with former Governor Aminu Tambuwal of the PDP barely managing to clinch the Senate seat in his constituency.
It is worrisome that with the majority of the state and National Assembly seats and, importantly, the governorship in its kitty, the APC is embroiled in internal wrangling over its inability to manage the huge success at the polls.
Despite the concerted efforts to hide the crisis, there is anger among party members and intra-party squabble in the ruling party.
The feud has led to the emergence of two rival factions fighting to assume the control of the party. While a faction is led by Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko (Sokoto North), the other is headed by Senator Ibrahim Lamido (Sokoto East).
The dispute threatening the fabric of the APC has to do with the moves of some key members to wean the party off Wamakko’s perceived domineering influence. This is coming against the backdrop of widespread allegations of corruption.
Our correspondent reports that allegations of corruption, poor governance and the demolition of public structures are among the reasons for the intra-party squabble. Most party members believe that these allegations levelled against Wammako, who now controls the state’s governance levers, are giving the party a bad image.
Findings revealed that Senator Ibrahim Lamido, who is leading the quest for a new order in the APC and to whittle down Wammako’s influence, has continued to receive the support of some party stakeholders, including members of the National Assembly.
While Senator Wammakko, a former governor of the state who also served as deputy governor to former Governor Attahiru Bafarawa, is widely regarded as the APC’s leader in Sokoto, Senator Lamido came to the limelight when he clinched the APC senatorial ticket in the build-up to the 2023 general elections.
Who is Senator Lamido? He is a cerebral politician and philanthropist of repute. His dexterity and political sagacity were instrumental to his clinching the Sokoto North East Senatorial District ticket during the APC primaries. He eventually triumphed in the election.
Many believed that Lamido, who has never undergone political tutelage under Wamakko, is a man of himself. He is perceivably averse to paying homage to Wamakko, the acclaimed “godfather” of Sokoto politics.
Political watchers said his action provided an opportunity for some disenchanted APC members who have had enough of Wammako’s alleged domineering influence. “These members have since rallied round Lamido, and things have fallen apart,” a public affairs analyst, Abubakar Lawal Gwadabawa, said.
Instantly, Lamido became a “marked man” within the party. This became noticeable as he was ostracised and alienated from the party’s affairs, activities and events. Things got to a peak when the Lamido’s faction threatened to form a parallel party structure to challenge what they perceived as Governor Aliyu and Wamakko’s excessive influence.
Sani Yakubu Gudu, a member representing the Gudu/Tangaza Federal Constituency loyal to the Lamido faction, insisted that their plan is to salvage the APC from total breakdown under Wammako’s leadership.
He said, “We’ve made efforts to persuade both politicians to correct their mistakes, but they have refused. We cannot stand by and allow them to tarnish our reputation. The people elected us, and we must defend their interests at all costs.”
It is believed that the party split could be a dress rehearsal for the 2027 general elections, where it is feared that the struggle for the APC tickets will be fierce.
A close ally of Senator Lamido, Mannir Shettima, told LEADERSHIP Sunday that Wammako’s overbearing influence and penchant for having everybody kowtow to his whims and caprices were the genesis of the current crisis in the party.
Shettima said, “No one doubted the political relevance of Senator Wamakko, but he should allow others to breathe. What we discovered in him was his domineering tendencies. He always wanted others to take directives from him and do things his way, not minding the feelings of others.
“Wamakko’s private residence is now the party secretariat where the APC chairman dictates the affairs of the party. Since Senator Lamido refused to hold his activities in Wamakko’s residence, he has been seen as an outcast who must be excommunicated from happenings within the party.
“I think the Wamakko camp is jittery of Senator Lamido’s towering political relevance in the state with his activities ranging from youth and women empowerment, diverse welfare interventions, up to local and foreign scholarships for students within his senatorial district.
“The maladministration of Governor Ahmed Aliyu, a protege of Senator Wamakko, in the award of a contract to repair 25 boreholes at the cost of N1.2 billion, the unjust removal of traditional rulers over political allegations, and failing to address the issue of banditry in parts of the state are concerns to us.
“I can assure you that Senator Lamido is not alone on this rescue mission. Traditional rulers, government officials and academics are involved in this project. Even serving commissioners, special advisers and political appointees in this administration have enlisted to restore democratic norms in the affairs of our party,” Shettima stated.
But it appears Shettima is right after all as only recently, a traditional ruler, the district head of Sabon Birni in Sabon Birni local government area of Sokoto State, Alhaji Abdullahi Muhammad Bawa, resigned his appointment to join the Lamido team.
In a resignation letter dated October 16, 2024, Bawa said he resigned his position with effect from October 16, 2024.
The letter which he personally signed states, “I was appointed district head of Sabon Birni on July 15, 2014 and today, October 16, 2025, I resigned my position to join the political wagon of Senator Ibrahim Lamido.”
Bawa is the first traditional ruler that has announced his resignation since the eruption of the internal crisis in the APC.
The spokesperson of the Lamido-led faction, Hon. Sani Yakubu Gudu, a member representing Tangaza/Gudu Federal Constituency, alleged that several serving commissioners, special advisers and other political appointees under Governor Aliyu are secretly supporting the Lamido faction.
But Abdullahi Tangaza, an APC stalwart loyal to Wammako, said the agitations of the Lamido group were baseless. He insisted that the talk about saving the party from collapse under Wammako was merely a smokescreen by those bent on dislodging the former governor.
“Was it not under Wamakko that APC bounced back to win an election against a ruling party? We know where this is coming from, and it will quickly be nipped in the bud,” Tangaza said
Speaking to LEADERSHIP Sunday, Alhaji Isa Sadiq Achida (state APC chairman), dismissed any claim of a squabble within the party in the state, insisting that such were the desperate moves of bad losers.
“APC is intact in Sokoto. We don’t have any crisis and will not tolerate any group trying to create one. This irrelevant distraction is coming from starters in Sokoto politics. They are trying to create confusion, but they will not succeed,” he said.
As events unfolded in the APC, the opposition PDP in the state seemed happy. The PDP publicity secretary, Hassan Sahabi, said the party was not surprised that the APC was battling with internal squabbles, noting, “We saw this coming.”
“The accusation of maladministration coming within the party only buttressed our allegations of corruption and mismanagement inherent in the administration of Governor Ahmed Aliyu.
“We have thrown a challenge to the APC-led government to provide evidence of a contract awarded to repair 25 boreholes at a cost of N1.2 billion, including the contract papers, locations and cost breakdown. We await their response,” Sahabi said.
Only time will tell whether the APC will come out of the crisis unscratched.
