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Northern Governors’ Forum has urged women Ulamas to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governors made the call through Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State who is also the Chairman of Northern States Governors’ Forum.
Yahaya, who spoke on Sunday in Kaduna at an engagement meeting with Northern Nigeria women Ulama from the 19 northern states, said the meeting provided an opportunity to engage the women Islamic scholars and mobilise them towards ensuring Tinubu’s return to office in 2027.
The governor said northern APC governors would cascade the mobilisation effort to their respective states and grassroots communities.
“We will go and cascade down this mission and ensure that our womenfolk and indeed our entire people align with the system,” he said.
Yahaya said the governors would work towards retaining their positions and ensuring the success of the APC at the 2027 elections.
He urged participants to remain united, strategic and focused, saying political success required collective effort, patience and perseverance.
According to him, political journeys are not for one person but involve citizens who deserve to have their voices heard and served with fairness.
Yahaya said the administration had taken difficult but necessary decisions to address challenges confronting the country.
He expressed optimism that the measures would bring stability and relief to Nigerians, urging the people not to be distracted.
The governor also urged APC members to educate citizens on the administration’s policies and achievements to strengthen public understanding and support.
He said the 19 northern states remained important to the APC’s political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 elections.
Yahaya said competence, integrity, justice and fairness should guide leadership, stressing that a leader must govern all Nigerians regardless of religion or region.
He called for unity among APC members, urging them not to allow intimidation, confusion or division to derail the party’s progress.
Also speaking, Gov. Uba Sani of Kaduna State said the women Ulama were gathered to express their support for Tinubu based on his achievements.
Sani said the Ulama had highlighted Tinubu’s interventions in education, infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture and security as reasons for supporting his administration.
He said the women represented millions of followers across the 19 northern states and could influence grassroots mobilisation.
The governor said Tinubu had demonstrated inclusivity by ensuring that development reached different parts of the country without discrimination.
Sani particularly highlighted investments in education, skills development and student financing, saying northern Nigeria had benefited significantly from the programmes.
He said the region accounted for more than 60 per cent of beneficiaries under some Federal Government skills based education initiatives.
Sani said the gathering was organised in collaboration with the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Ibrahim Kabiru Masari.
He urged the women Ulama to take their message to communities across the northern states, local government areas and wards.
Sani said the North had benefited significantly under Tinubu’s administration, adding that the claim was supported by data and statistics.
“We should talk about the politics of issues and ask what previous administrations did for Northern Nigeria compared with what President Tinubu has done,” he said.
In his remarks, Alhaji Ibrahim Masari urged the women Ulama to remain committed to supporting Tinubu, describing the gathering as evidence of grassroots support.
He said the President was aware of the meeting and had sent his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, who could not attend.
Masari said Gbajabiamila was absent because he had taken his ailing mother to hospital, praying for her recovery.
He urged the women to remain steadfast, saying the administration would not deliberately betray the trust placed in it.
Masari also defended the presidential ticket, saying supporters backed the arrangement because of their conviction and belief in its leadership potential.
He urged Nigerians to reject ethnic and religious discrimination, stressing that leadership should be based on justice, competence and integrity.
Masari appealed to the women to reject political deception and remain focused on issues affecting the country.
He prayed for Tinubu’s success in 2027 and asked Allah to strengthen the President’s resolve, wisdom and ability to correct mistakes.
He also prayed for the safe return of participants and for peace and progress in Nigeria.
Speaking also, Dr Hadiza Usman, representing women from the North West, urged the government to prioritise women’s empowerment, saying supported women could mobilise their communities for development.
She said women remained powerful grassroots mobilisers and appealed to government leaders to ensure empowerment programmes reached ordinary women, regardless of political connections.
Hajiya Farida Usman urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to address insecurity and make primary and secondary education genuinely free for children of poor families.
She said many youths were involved in banditry, kidnapping and insurgency due to lack of education.
Usman urged government to upgrade public schools and ensure poverty alleviation programmes reached intended beneficiaries.(NAN)
However, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, has promised to introduce a N500,000 monthly living minimum wage for Nigerian workers if elected president in the 2027 general elections.
The activist and publisher of Sahara Reporters also said his party would provide 24-hour electricity, make education free and accessible at all levels, construct one million public mixed-income homes and reform tenancy laws to reduce the burden of advance rent payments.
Sowore made the promise in an interview with Independent, published on Sunday, while outlining the AAC’s agenda for the 2027 elections.
“Our agenda is revolutionary justice and equal rights. Nigeria is enormously wealthy, yet Nigerians have been deliberately impoverished through corruption, incompetence and an economic system designed to reward a tiny political and business elite. We intend to change that fundamentally.
“We are proposing a ₦500,000 monthly living minimum wage because Nigerian workers cannot continue receiving starvation wages while senators, governors and political appointees consume millions every month.
“We will deliver 24-hour electricity because no serious industrial economy can operate permanently on generators. Education will be free and accessible at all levels, and no Nigerian child should be denied education because his or her parents are poor.”
He added, “We will embark on the construction of one million public mixed income homes while reforming tenancy laws so that working people are not forced to pay one or two years of rent in advance. Healthcare must become a right, not a privilege reserved for people who can afford medical tourism.
“We will industrialise Nigeria, massively expand agricultural production and processing, rebuild infrastructure and create dignified employment.
“We will reform policing and security, properly compensate security personnel and deploy modern technology, including drones and advanced intelligence systems, to confront insecurity.
“We will wage an uncompromising war against corruption and recover public resources stolen by political officeholders. Nigeria’s wealth must work for Nigerians.”
Sowore is one of the 18 2027 presidential candidates formally announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission on Saturday.
The activist said the AAC would build a “people funded campaign” rather than rely on wealthy individuals or political patrons to finance its 2027 campaign.
On the ideological direction of his party, Sowore said Nigerians were “more ready than ever” for a leftist government, arguing that decades of capitalist governments had failed to address inequality and poverty.
“Our socialism is practical. It means the wealth produced by society must improve the lives of the people who produce it. It means universal education, healthcare, decent housing, electricity, living wages and social protection.
“It means workers deserve dignity. It means Nigeria’s natural resources belong to Nigerians rather than a handful of politically connected billionaires.
“After decades of capitalist governments producing spectacular wealth for a few and devastating poverty for millions, Nigerians do not need another lecture about why this failed system should continue. They need an alternative, and AAC represents that alternative.”
Sowore also criticised the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, saying his government would reverse what he described as the philosophy behind the policies.
He said his government would judge its economic policies by their impact on the material conditions of Nigerians.
On security during the 2027 campaigns, Sowore said he would demand professionalism from security agencies and insist on his constitutional rights.
“I have never asked Nigeria’s security agencies for favours. I demand professionalism. Police officers, soldiers and intelligence personnel are employees of the Nigerian people. They are not private security guards belonging to a president, governor, minister or ruling political party.
“I have been arrested, detained, prosecuted and attacked under different governments, so intimidation is not new to me. But there is an important lesson from those experiences. Resistance works.”
He said his administration would improve the welfare of security personnel and professionalise security institutions.
The activist emerged as the AAC’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election after being selected by consensus.
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