- Says 70 Percent Of ₦450bn Farm Loans Are Northern Beneficiaries
- Badaru, Shekarau Mobilise Northern Leaders, Youth,Target Grassroots Support For Tinubu/Shettima Ticket
Vice President Kashim Shettima has launched a fresh appeal to northern Nigerians to rally behind President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, declaring that the region has nothing to fear from another four years of the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.
Shettima, who made the appeal amid preparations for the 2027 presidential election, urged northern leaders and citizens to close ranks behind Tinubu, insisting that the region had benefited from the administration’s appointments, agricultural interventions and development projects.
TheMatrix Newspaper reports that President Bola Tinubu’s political standing in parts of the North has come under intense pressure amid growing criticism of his administration over insecurity, economic hardship and concerns about the region’s interests. The discontent has reportedly spilled into open hostility, including the burning of Tinubu’s campaign posters and other acts of opposition to his re-election bid, raising questions about the APC’s efforts to retain northern support ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Reacting, the Vice President’s message was unequivocal: the North should see Tinubu’s second-term ambition not as a threat to its interests but as an opportunity to consolidate its gains and secure further benefits from the Federal Government.
He spoke on Monday, October 12, when he received a delegation of Arewa for Tinubu (A4A), a northern-based political think tank campaigning for the President’s re-election.
“Let’s unite as a people and work for the development of our region and the progress of our people through the re-election of this administration. We are benefiting and we stand to benefit more from this government in many ways,” Shettima said.
Seeking to reinforce his argument with figures, the Vice President cited agricultural credit interventions, claiming that northern farmers accounted for the bulk of beneficiaries under a Federal Government-backed programme.
“The Bank of Agriculture has disbursed ₦450 billion to 700,000 smallholder farmers in Nigeria, and about 70 per cent of the beneficiaries are from the North,” he said.
Shettima also pointed to major infrastructure projects and other government programmes as evidence that the administration was attentive to the region’s development needs.
“The present administration is working towards completing landmark and groundbreaking projects in parts of the country. I can assure you that the President loves the North and the President will work for the North,” he declared.
The Vice President urged the delegation to intensify its mobilisation efforts across wards, communities and local government areas, stressing that the task of securing support for Tinubu’s second-term bid required sustained engagement beyond political leaders and established power blocs.
He also thanked the group for its continued support for the President, calling on its members to strengthen their grassroots networks ahead of the election.
Badaru, Shekarau activate northern mobilisation machinery
The meeting also exposed the growing organisational push by pro-Tinubu groups to consolidate support across the North, with former Jigawa State Governor Abubakar Badaru and former Kano State Governor Ibrahim Shekarau outlining plans to deepen consultations with influential figures and take the campaign to the grassroots.
Badaru, Director-General of Arewa for Asiwaju, said the organisation would not relent until it achieved its objective of securing northern support for Tinubu’s re-election.
He disclosed that the group planned to engage Muslim and Christian clerics, alongside other prominent Nigerians, to persuade them to support the Tinubu-Shettima ticket in 2027.
“On discussions with the high profile, we have gone far. We have met them severally and the BoT is meeting them again to consolidate our gains and to tell them why there is need to support this ticket,” Badaru said.
He explained that the organisation was deliberately concentrating on grassroots contacts while complementing the activities of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), rather than duplicating the work of the central campaign structure.“We are also supporting the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) with whatever they want us to do that is micro in nature because they are so big and we really don’t want to lose sight of the bigger arrangement that is there,” he said.
“We want to focus very well on the contacts at the grassroots — the local government areas and the wards.”
Badaru’s remarks suggest that the group intends to build a parallel grassroots mobilisation network capable of reaching communities and local political structures across the region, while maintaining coordination with the main campaign machinery.
Shekarau promises repeat of 2023 feat
Shekarau, chairman of the organisation’s Board of Trustees (BoT), said the group, which supported Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 general election, was preparing to replicate its efforts in 2027.
He disclosed that A4A had been holding consultations with northern governors and other stakeholders to identify areas of cooperation and strengthen the coalition behind the President’s re-election.
Beyond political consultations, Shekarau announced plans to establish a fully operational secretariat to coordinate the organisation’s activities across the region.
According to him, the proposed structure will house directors and provide a central platform for state coordinators to submit reports, assess developments, receive directives and coordinate mobilisation efforts.
The planned secretariat is expected to serve as the nerve centre of the organisation’s operations as it seeks to translate high-level endorsements into support at the ward and community levels.
Shekarau also formally invited Shettima to commission the A4A office complex on October 17, 2027, an event intended to mark a further step in the organisation’s institutional development.
Political stakes rise ahead of 2027
The renewed mobilisation comes as political actors and support groups begin positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 presidential contest, with the North remaining a crucial arena for parties seeking to build a broad electoral coalition.
Tinubu and Shettima secured the presidency in 2023 on the APC platform, defeating their principal challengers in a contest shaped by regional voting patterns, party alliances and competing economic and governance promises
For the ruling party, retaining support in the North will be central to its re-election strategy. However, Shettima’s appeal that the region has nothing to fear from another Tinubu term also places the administration’s record and future commitments at the centre of the political argument.
While the Vice President highlighted agricultural financing, appointments and infrastructure projects, the administration’s claims of regional benefits will form part of the wider debate over its performance, particularly on economic conditions, security and livelihoods.
The A4A delegation included several former governors and senior political figures, underscoring the level of political experience being assembled behind the campaign.
Those present included former Plateau State governors Joshua Dariye and Simon Lalong; former Taraba State Governor Jolly Nyame; former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello; former Katsina State Governor Ibrahim Shehu Shema; and former Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda.
Also in attendance were the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman; the Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (retd.); and other government officials and members of the organisation’s Board of Trustees and secretariat.
