BY EMMA PETER
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, and six All Progressives Congress (APC) governors from the North-Central region have endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima for re-election in 2027.
The endorsement was announced on Saturday, October 10, during the North-Central Grand Rally and Endorsement for Tinubu and Shettima in Lafia, Nasarawa State, attended by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, APC leaders, governors and party supporters.
Akume, who is the Grand Patron of the North Central Grassroots Mobilisation Network for Tinubu/Shettima 2027, urged political stakeholders to respect the principle of an eight-year power rotation between northern and southern Nigeria, arguing that the arrangement was intended to promote political balance and national understanding.
Presenting Tinubu as the region’s preferred candidate for the 2027 presidential election, the SGF declared that the North-Central had resolved to support the President’s re-election.
“By the authority of this great congregation, I, Senator George Akume, hereby propose that the people of the North-Central States meeting here have resolved that, come 2027, our sole candidate is His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR. There is no other candidate,” he said.
Akume called for continuity in the country’s leadership, maintaining that Tinubu should be allowed to complete the eight-year tenure envisaged under the power-rotation understanding reached by political leaders in Kaduna in 1999.
Highlighting the administration’s achievements, the SGF cited major infrastructure projects, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the proposed Badagry-Sokoto Highway, which he said could improve connectivity, unlock economic opportunities and accelerate development across the country.
He also pointed to increased allocations to state and local governments, describing them as measures that had strengthened the capacity of subnational administrations to address developmental challenges.
On the removal of the petrol subsidy, Akume described the decision as one requiring political courage, noting that the policy had remained a major subject of debate among political leaders and presidential candidates. He cautioned against promises to reverse the policy without adequately considering the economic consequences.
The SGF further highlighted the establishment of additional universities and the introduction of student loan arrangements as measures aimed at widening access to tertiary education and giving young Nigerians opportunities to pursue their academic ambitions regardless of their financial backgrounds.
In his welcome address, Nasarawa State Governor and Chairman of the North-Central Governors Forum, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, seconded Akume’s motion, declaring the collective commitment of APC governors in the region to Tinubu’s re-election.
Sule said the President’s administration had recorded progress in oil production, foreign reserves, capital market performance, education financing and infrastructure development.
He specifically referenced the increase in oil production to more than 1.8 million barrels per day, foreign reserves exceeding $50 billion, capitalisation rising to approximately N180 trillion and the introduction of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
“I, Engr. A.A. Sule, the Executive Governor of Nasarawa State and the Chairman of North Central Governors Forum, hereby second the motion that all the APC Governors of the North Central States: Plateau, Benue, Niger, Kogi, Kwara and Nasarawa States, as well as FCT, support a man who has improved our oil production from less than one million to over 1.8 million barrels per day,” Sule said.
He also cited the administration’s education and infrastructure initiatives as reasons for supporting Tinubu and Shettima for a second term.
The National Chairman of the APC, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda Goshwe, assured the First Lady of the region’s support for the President’s re-election, saying Tinubu had done more for the North-Central than previous administrations.
Yilwatda urged party members and supporters to sustain their commitment to the APC at both national and grassroots levels, stressing the importance of mobilising support across the region ahead of the 2027 general elections.
In her remarks, the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, conveyed the President’s goodwill message to the people of the North-Central, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to national security, unity and economic prosperity.
She referred to Tinubu’s October 1 Independence Day address, titled “From Reforms to Prosperity,” explaining that the administration’s reform agenda was designed to lay the foundation for improved economic conditions and broader prosperity.
Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, who also serves as Secretary of the Presidential Campaign Council for Tinubu and Shettima’s re-election, reaffirmed the commitment of the APC and the Progressive Governors Forum to mobilising support for the President in 2027.
Uzodimma said his presence at the rally demonstrated solidarity with the North-Central and the determination of party leaders to strengthen collaboration with governors and grassroots supporters ahead of the general elections.
The six APC governors from the North-Central region, alongside political leaders at the rally, took turns to reaffirm their commitment to Tinubu and Shettima’s re-election and pledged to work towards the victory of APC candidates at all levels in the 2027 general elections.
