Ahead of the 2027 general elections, a high-powered delegation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led by Senator Abdulaziz Yari, Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, has embarked on consultations with prominent Muslim clerics across northern Nigeria. The delegation visited Plateau, Bauchi, Kaduna, and Kano states, engaging Islamic scholars and leaders of major Muslim movements. Yari, a former governor of Zamfara State, was accompanied by notable APC leaders, including former Kano State governor Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and former Borno State governor Senator Ali Modu Sheriff.
The consultations, which commenced in Jos, Plateau State, involved meetings with prominent Islamic scholars, including Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir, Chairman of the Council of Ulama of Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah (JIBWIS). The delegation also met with Sheikh Ibrahim Dahiru Bauchi, Khalifa of the Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi Zawiya, in Bauchi. During these meetings, the clerics offered prayers for President Bola Tinubu and urged the government to sustain dialogue with religious leaders and communities beyond election periods.
In Kaduna, Yari held extensive discussions with Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau, National Chairman of a JIBWIS faction, on issues ranging from insecurity and economic hardship to the need to sustain mutual trust among communities of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. Bala Lau commended Yari for reaching out to the religious community but urged political leaders to listen more attentively to the people and communicate with them with sincerity.
The delegation later proceeded to Kano, where Yari met with the leader of the Qadiriyya movement, Sheikh Qaribullahi Nasiru Kabara. Kabara offered special prayers for peace in Nigeria and for the success of the delegation’s consultations, while urging the APC leaders to take the message of unity to communities across the country. These consultations are part of the APC's efforts to engage faith-based stakeholders on national issues and strengthen dialogue with religious leaders ahead of the 2027 elections.
The meetings provided an opportunity for the APC delegation to hear concerns from religious leaders on security, economic hardship, national cohesion, and the relationship between government and communities as political parties prepare for the next electoral contest. The consultations come amid intensified political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 elections, with the APC and opposition groups stepping up engagements with religious, community, and other influential stakeholders across the country.
The APC leaders also included Senator Adamu Aliero, Senator Nasiru Sani Zangon Daura, Senator Ajibola Bashiru, Honourable James Abiodun Faleke, and former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Ahmed Idris Wase. The delegation's engagements with Muslim clerics are seen as a strategic move to build alliances and garner support for the APC in the northern region.
The outcome of the consultations and their impact on the 2027 elections remains to be seen. However, the APC's efforts to engage with religious leaders and communities are a clear indication of the party's determination to build a strong support base across the country. The party's ability to sustain dialogue with these stakeholders beyond election periods will be crucial in determining its success in the next electoral contest.
Key points
- The APC delegation led by Senator Abdulaziz Yari met with prominent Muslim clerics in northern Nigeria to strengthen dialogue and garner support ahead of the 2027 general elections.
- The consultations covered key issues such as insecurity, economic hardship, and national cohesion, with clerics urging political leaders to listen more attentively to the people.
- The APC's engagements with Muslim clerics are part of a broader strategy to build alliances and mobilize support across the country ahead of the 2027 elections.
