BY SEGUN ADEBAYO – With only 24 hours left before the cutoff time, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) finally put to rest months of speculation by formally submitted his presidential forms to the party National Working Committee (NWC) in Abuja with the name of Vice President Kashim Shettima retained as his running mate for the 2027 general elections.
As the political air in Abuja, the nation’s capital emitted tension and the clock ticked toward a looming deadline for next year’s polls, President Tinubu made his defining move by officially submitting the joint nomination forms to lock in himself and Vice President Shettima as the Party’s flag-bearers.
Clearly an expected move, the development has now set the stage for a fiery and highly anticipated campaign as the APC seek to secure another term in continuation of the Renewed Hope agenda. Both ran in 2023 under the Tinubu/Shettima joint ticket in what was widely described as same faith ticket due to their common religious beliefs, but they still went ahead to win the presidential election.
The President’s public announcement of Shettima as his running mate has now cleared all the doubts hanging over his reported reluctance to run on the same ticket with the vice president again and on Friday, the APC leadership formally confirmed the development while receiving the completed Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) presidential nomination forms for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Reports indicated that the forms were delivered on behalf of the Presidency by the Special Adviser on Political and Other Matters, Ibrahim Masari to the Party’s National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, at an event that held in Abuja, with drew an array of high-profile party executives, state governors and legislators in a robust display of party solidarity.
Yilwatda, who declared that the party’s massive base was already locked in to guarantee a second term victory, said: “Today is a reflection of the wishes of over 12 million of our members who overwhelmingly voted Mr President as their candidate to flag off the party candidature in the 2027 presidential election. We are proud that members of the APC across the country voted overwhelmingly for him.”
Firing up the party’s leadership to be battle ready for the 2027 general elections, the APC National Chairman expressed confidence that their base will swell massively beyond official registers, while charging governors and party leaders to silence online cynicism by aggressively showcasing and marketing the administration’s transformative social and structural reforms to everyday citizens.
This rallying cry set the tone for a high-powered submission ceremony, headlined by Imo State Governor and Progressive Governors Forum Chairman, Senator Hope Uzodimma in an impressive gathering boasted a robust lineup of key state executives, including the governors of Borno, Kano, Kebbi, Adamawa, Kaduna, and Yobe, standing shoulder to shoulder with several deputy governors and federal lawmakers.
