The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has claimed that President Bola Tinubu has achieved more for Northern Nigeria in three years than previous administrations, pointing to road construction, gas infrastructure and student loan schemes.
Yilwatda made the statement on Tuesday in Abuja while receiving a delegation from the Arewa for Asiwaju (A4A) group, led by former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, at the APC national secretariat.
He praised the group’s inclusive structure and mobilisation strategy ahead of the 2027 general elections, noting that its activities would support the efforts of the APC and the Presidential Campaign Council.
The APC chairman called on the group to collaborate with the party in mobilising voters across the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). He stressed that winning elections required proper planning, effective structures and cooperation among key stakeholders.
Yilwatda stated, “I am happy that the North is now talking. This is because sometimes people say the North doesn’t like President Tinubu. And I say, who are those people that are from the North? Who? Is it the former governors? Most of them are here. Is it former speakers from the North? Most of them are here. Is it the former Senate presidents from the North? Most of them are here. Just keep on calling the names of the people that you know in the North. They’re in this group.
“President Bola Tinubu has done so much in the South and done nothing in the North.
“There’s no government in the history of Nigeria that has constructed more kilometres of road for the North than President Bola Tinubu.
“Yesterday, when I was putting the figures together, the roads under construction and the ones that have been procured in the North alone are slightly over 3,000 kilometres of road. It shows the commitment Mr President has for the North.”
He also encouraged Northern political leaders to leverage the Nigerian Education Loan Fund to expand access to education across the region.
The APC chairman urged the A4A group to organise a press conference featuring prominent Northern leaders to publicly express their support for Tinubu and challenge claims that the region was withdrawing its backing for the President.
He added that the party would work with the group to coordinate election strategies and voter mobilisation, emphasising that its target should cover not only the presidential election but also National Assembly, governorship and state House of Assembly contests.
Earlier, Shekarau explained that the A4A initiative was created to mobilise voters throughout Northern Nigeria and the FCT, identify areas where the party had performed poorly and tackle issues responsible for voter apathy and low turnout.
According to him, the group had established about 20 directorates and appointed coordinators at the state, local government and ward levels to strengthen the APC’s existing structures rather than operate independently.
Shekarau said, “This movement has also identified and marshalled out all the achievements of President Tinubu’s government across the North. In fact, many of us were very surprised, positively, when the secretariat reeled out the various achievements, projects and programmes that have been carried out, some of them ongoing in the North, most of which are unknown to the large population in the North, except in pockets of areas where such projects are ongoing.
“We intend to expose these projects to all concerned in the North, so that we change the narrative that Tinubu has not done anything and that Tinubu has neglected the North. We know this is coming from the negative side, the opposition, and some innocent northerners, who are not necessarily doing so out of ignorance. So we are determined to expose this.”
Shekarau further disclosed that the group’s secretariat would be inaugurated on October 17, with Vice-President Kashim Shettima expected to attend.
Also speaking, former Plateau State Governor and Deputy Chairman of the A4A Board of Trustees, Simon Lalong, described the initiative as a coalition of experienced political leaders working to support the APC and improve its electoral performance.
Lalong noted that former governors, lawmakers, serving ministers and other influential political figures were involved in the initiative, adding that their experience would strengthen the party’s preparations for the 2027 general elections.
