Former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Dr. Betta Edu has urged Nigerian women and young people to turn out en masse for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election, describing the administration’s economic reforms as the prelude to a period of tangible rewards.
Edu spoke to journalists in Abaliliki -Ebonyi State during the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally.
She said “The good news is that Nigeria has been through its bend already, and we have been through the reforms.”
“We have been through the transformation, and right now it’s time to reap the dividends of what the president has set in place.”
Dr. Edu, now co-director of the governing APC’s women-mobilization directorate, said women should back a President who has placed them “at the heart of government.”
She made the appeal as the party intensifies outreach to market traders, artisans and rural voters ahead of the next general election.
NewsQuest reports that her message blends economic reassurance with electoral mobilization.
Nigeria’s removal of fuel subsidies and currency reforms have imposed sharp near-term costs on households, but Edu argued that the country has passed the most painful phase and is now positioned to benefit.
“Vote for a President who has women at the heart of government,” she said.
“Vote for a President who has the youth at the heart of his government – he’s done a whole lot.”
Edu said the administration’s appeal to women rests on programs spanning microcredit, health care, education and social protection.
She cited the student-loan program, free maternal care and grants to vulnerable households as evidence that the government’s reforms are beginning to reach ordinary Nigerians.
The remarks come amid scrutiny of whether cash grants and business equipment distributed during campaign-season outreach amount to voter inducement.
Edu rejected that characterization, saying the interventions began well before the current political cycle.
“From the beginning of this government up until this point, there have been empowerment programmes, step by step,” she said.
The wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has been to almost every state in this nation, empowering women in different ways – from farmers’ money to health to education.”
She said the First Lady’s Renewed Hope Initiative has operated since 2023, and described the recent grants as a continuation of an established program rather than a new electoral tactic.
At a Calabar outreach last month, 500 petty traders received 50,000 naira each, alongside items including deep freezers, blenders and toasters.
Edu said the money was intended as seed capital for women whose businesses often begin with as little as 5,000 or 10,000 naira of stock.
Edu said similar programs would extend across Cross River State and beyond, with additional outreach planned for the state’s central and northern districts.
She said the APC is building women’s support structures nationwide as part of its effort to secure President Tinubu’s re-election.
“We are doing the same for every other state,” she said. “We have foot soldiers across the entire state, and they will be doing this to support women as we go into the elections.”
For Edu, the political calculation is straightforward: women who have received support should help carry the administration’s message into homes, markets and communities.
“Women are a strategic and formidable force in shaping electoral outcomes,” she said.
