Governor Abba Yusuf has transmitted the name of Murtala Sule Garo to the Kano State House of Assembly for screening and confirmation as deputy governor, filling a vacancy left when Aminu Gwarzo resigned on March 27, 2026. Yusuf said the move followed wide consultations with key stakeholders and was made under Section 191 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, which allows a governor to nominate a deputy when the office falls empty.
The nomination puts Garo, 48, back at the center of Kano politics after more than two decades in party and public office. He has served as State Organising Secretary of his party, special adviser to the Kano State governor, elected Kabo Local Government chairman, chairman of ALGON Kano, commissioner for local government and chieftaincy affairs, and the APC deputy governorship candidate in the 2023 general elections. He also ran with Nasiru Gawuna in the Kano governorship race that year, a campaign that ended with the pair on the opposite side of Yusuf’s current administration.
Mustapha Muhammad, the governor’s spokesperson, said Garo’s record made him fit for the role, describing him as a “season political administrator” with “over two decades of service in both elective and appointed positions.” He added that Yusuf requested the Assembly’s approval after “wide consultation with key stakeholders,” and said Garo’s background covered party organisation, local government administration and executive office. A separate TVC News report said the decision was taken “in the interest of the people” and to ensure stability in governance in Kano State.
The deputy governor’s seat became vacant after Gwarzo resigned and switched political camps following a fall-out with Yusuf. Days before that resignation, the Kano State House of Assembly had moved to impeach him over alleged gross misconduct, abuse of office, breach of public trust and financial malfeasance. That sequence left Yusuf with a constitutional opening to name a replacement, and the administration has now moved quickly to place Garo before lawmakers for screening.
The choice also carries political baggage. Garo is the son-in-law of Atiku Abubakar, Nigeria’s former vice-president, and he has been tied to past controversies in Kano politics. Premium Times reported that he was being investigated by the state government over alleged misappropriation of ₦57.4 billion meant for local government, and said Garo and Gawuna were detained by police in 2019 over alleged electoral malpractice during the Kano governorship election collation process. Even so, Yusuf has pressed ahead, and the real test now shifts to the Assembly: whether lawmakers confirm a man with deep local government experience, a high-level party pedigree and a trail of political controversy to become the state’s next deputy governor.
