The All Progressives Congress (APC) in the North Central region of Nigeria has announced plans to hold a grand rally in Lafia, the capital of Nasarawa State, next Saturday. This event is part of efforts to mobilize grassroots support for President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima ahead of the 2027 general elections. The rally is organized under the North Central Grassroots Mobilisation Movement for Tinubu/Shettima, a regional initiative launched to coordinate political mobilisation across the six North Central states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The announcement was made by Dele Alake, spokesperson for the APC Presidential Campaign Council, following the inaugural meeting of the movement in Abuja. The meeting was held at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, and was attended by political leaders and government officials from the region. Mr. Akume commended the initiative, stating that the North-central has an overriding objective of delivering the highest regional vote total for Mr. Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.
The National Coordinator of the movement, Sonny Echono, a former Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), said the focus of the movement has shifted from whether Mr. Tinubu would win the North-central to how the region could secure the highest number of votes for him in 2027. The North-central zone comprises Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, and Plateau states, alongside the Federal Capital Territory. This region is politically significant in presidential elections due to its sizeable voting population and its role as a swing region in national contests.
The governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule, described the mobilisation initiative as timely, saying the political challenges facing the APC ahead of the 2027 election are gradually receding. According to him, the latest voter register showed strong support for the APC across the North-central. Mr. Sule expressed confidence that the region would deliver the highest number of votes for Mr. Tinubu and other APC candidates in the next election.
The region currently has the SGF and the national chairman of the ruling APC, among other senior government officials and political appointees. Mr. Sule said the party would use the grassroots mobilisation movement to take its message to communities across the region and build support for the Tinubu-Shettima ticket. Mr. Echono said the initiative would bring together political leaders, grassroots actors, and other stakeholders under a common platform ahead of the election.
Beyond political mobilisation, the forum resolved to organise medical outreach programmes across the region, establish a Reconciliation Committee, and hold town hall meetings. The medical outreach is expected to form part of the movement's grassroots engagement, while the proposed reconciliation committee will address disagreements among party members and stakeholders in the region. The Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, will work with state commissioners for information, APC state publicity secretaries, and state publicity committees to raise awareness about the initiative.
At the end of the inaugural meeting, members resolved to intensify efforts to mobilise support for Mr. Tinubu ahead of the 2027 election, with the stated goal of making the North-central the region with the highest vote total for the president. The Lafia rally will be the first major public mobilisation event announced under the new regional initiative. The APC's push comes as political parties and emerging opposition alliances begin positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 presidential election, with the North-central expected to be an important battleground in the contest.
Key points
- The APC in North-central Nigeria plans a grand rally in Lafia to mobilize support for President Bola Tinubu's re-election in 2027.
- The North Central Grassroots Mobilisation Movement for Tinubu/Shettima was launched to coordinate political mobilisation across the six North Central states and the Federal Capital Territory.
- The region is politically significant in presidential elections due to its sizeable voting population and its role as a swing region in national contests.
