President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday inaugurated the All Progressives Congress’s (APC) presidential campaign council for the 2027 election, pairing a drive for re-election with a pledge to keep pursuing the economic reforms that have defined his administration.
Tinubu told party leaders and council members at the presidential Villa, Abuja that victory would depend on organisation and turnout at the ward level, not merely on the party’s national profile.
He said the campaign must proceed while the government continues to address fiscal obligations and attract investment.
“No one gets credit for an incomplete assignment until you deliver the next election, until you deliver your electoral wards, until you deliver the votes,” Tinubu said.
NewsQuest reportabrhat the inauguration formally launches the ruling party’s effort to secure a second term for President Tinubu, whose administration has pursued bold reforms, including the removal of petrol subsidies and the unification of exchange-rate windows.
Our correspondent gathered that the reform measures have drawn support from investors and international institutions, but have also imposed significant near-term costs on households and businesses.
President Tinubu said the campaign council would lead political mobilisation across states and local government areas, while he would continue engaging Nigerians directly on the government’s agenda.
“We have bills to pay. The American creditors cannot wait. We want those investors to come in and invest for the future of our children.”
The President urged council members to conduct the campaign responsibly, engage voters constructively and emphasise the administration’s policies under its Renewed Hope Agenda.
Imo State Governor and chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum Hope Uzodimma at the event advised the President not to allow campaign demands to distract from governing.
Governor Uzodimma, who serves as secretary of the council, said the campaign would be issue-based and argued that the administration’s willingness to end costly subsidies and multiple exchange-rate regimes had set Nigeria on a stronger economic course.
He acknowledged that although the reforms had caused hardship, economic indicators were beginning to validate the government’s approach. He cited gross domestic product growth of 4.43%, up from 4.23% a year earlier, as evidence of progress.
APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda said the party would campaign ward by ward, local government by local government and state by state to maximise voter turnout. He called for a contest centred on records, policies and ideas, conducted peacefully and with respect for voters.
The event also showcased unusual cross-party backing for President Tinubu’s re-election, what many speakers at the event described as unprecedented in the history idnthe country.
Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), and Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, a leading figure in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), attended the ceremony and pledged support.
Minister Wike said previous administrations had identified Nigeria’s problems but failed to confront them, while President Tinubu acted from his first day in office.
He challenged APC Governor to deliver their states for the President in the next General election and never to wait and claim for an over all national victory.
Vice President Kashim Shettima in his remarks praised President Tinubu’s political conviction and criticised opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Labour Party candidate Peter Obi.
He accused Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Party (NDC) of using statistics without adequate context, remarks likely to sharpen an already combative pre-election atmosphere.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, House of Representatives Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and other senior officials also endorsed President Tinubu’s bid for a second term, arguing that continuity was needed to consolidate the gains of his reform programme.
