Claim 

A post by trixxng.com claimed that the 2023 Presidential candidate of New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso has joined the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

The post which was made on January 21st, 2023 had been shared on different WhatsApp groups.

The circulating link (with a video attached) further added in its headline that Kwankwaso declared support for his PDP counterpart, Atiku Abubakar.

Who Is Kwankwaso?

Rabiu Kwankwaso was born on 21 October 1956, he is a Nigerian politician who was the Governor of Kano state from 1999 to 2003 and from 2011 to 2015. He was appointed the first Minister of Defence of the Fourth Republic from 2003 to 2007, under the administration of former 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 the Kano Central Senatorial District.

Who Is Atiku Abubakar

Atiku Abubakar is a Nigerian politician and businessman who served as the vice president of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007 during the presidency of Olusegun Obasanjo.

He contested as governor of Adamawa State in 1990, 1996, and later, in 1998, being elected before becoming Olusegun Obasanjo’s running mate during the 1999 presidential election and being re-elected in 2003.

In May 2022, he was chosen as the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate for the 2023 general election.

ROUNDCHECK  Findings 

To confirm the authenticity of the claim ROUNDCHECK first interpreted the video which was attached to the claim and produced in the Hausa Language.

The interpretation revealed that the speaker has said “that he was giving the other individuals the opportunity to join the PDP because there was no longer ‘Kwamkwasia’.

Though the identity of the individuals who spoke in Hausa has been unknown, ROUNDCHECK found out that the banner which appears on the video shows the Nigerian Union of Journalist (NUJ) Bauchi State Council.

This indicated that the individuals appearing in the video and the event has a relationship with NUJ Bauchi State Nigeria.

ROUNDCHECK searched through the verified Twitter page of Rabiu Kwankwaso and NNPP to ascertain if he announced stepping down for any other candidate. There was no announcement of such.

We also searched through the verified Twitter page of Atiku Abubakar and PDP; there was no indication that the NNPP has joined the PDP regarding the 2023 general elections.

ROUNDCHECK went further to do a google keyword search, and it was discovered that no media organizations reported the story and it was not captured by any mainstream media organizations. Also, the last public appearance of the candidate of the NNPP Rabiu Kwankwaso was at the Chatman house. In his speech, Kwankwaso did not make any comment relating to the claim.

Also, ROUNDCHECK discovered that during the last PDP presidential campaign rally in Minna Niger State, Atiku made no reference or comment relating to the claim.

Verdict

After checking all available records ROUNDCHECK can conclude that the claim in the headline and the content of the story is MISLEADING.

NB: This report was initially produced on the 10th of Feb, 2023.