By Ayomide Otitoju
The Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Senator AbdulAziz Yari, has assured President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that the North will support his re-election bid in 2027.
Yari said the North would reciprocate Tinubu’s support for the region, particularly his role in allowing former President Muhammadu Buhari to complete two terms in office between 2015 and 2023.
The former Zamfara State governor spoke on Monday in Lagos when he led members of the APC campaign council to the palace of the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, to seek royal blessings for the 2027 campaign.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu received the delegation before accompanying them to the palace.
Yari recalled that Tinubu resisted pressure from some APC members to contest the presidency in 2019, choosing instead to support Buhari’s re-election.
“For us in the North, I think it is time for us to pay Tinubu back for allowing the North complete its full term,” Yari said.
He said there was no reason for Northerners not to support Tinubu’s bid to complete his tenure and continue with his administration’s programmes.
“The message from Northern Nigeria is that there is nothing to worry about. There are still people of high calibre and character who believe in justice and fairness. We are going to do our best to ensure that Tinubu’s journey continues till the end. He can count on us,” he said.
Yari also said Tinubu had undertaken major reforms to reposition the country, noting that the President inherited a difficult economic situation.
He said the campaign council was not seeking Tinubu’s re-election solely on the basis of power rotation, but on what he described as the administration’s achievements in economic reforms and infrastructure development.
Sanwo-Olu described the campaign council as a team of experienced political leaders and administrators, including former Senate presidents, governors and speakers.
The governor said the council’s decision to visit traditional rulers first reflected the importance of traditional institutions in promoting peace, unity and national development.
Akiolu, in his remarks, expressed confidence that Tinubu would win a second term, declaring that there would be “no vacancy” in Aso Rock in 2027.
The monarch, however, called for an issue-based campaign and urged Nigerians to embrace honesty, hard work, unity and sincerity of purpose.
He also cautioned against allowing political differences to create enmity among citizens.
Members of the delegation included Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat, Lagos APC Chairman Cornelius Ojelabi, members of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Governance Advisory Council members and local government chairmen.
