The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has said President Bola Tinubu has done more for Northern Nigeria in three years than previous administrations, citing ongoing road projects, gas infrastructure and student loan opportunities.
Yilwatda stated this on Tuesday in Abuja when he received a delegation of the Arewa for Asiwaju group, led by former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, at the party’s national secretariat.
He commended the group for its inclusive structure and mobilisation plans ahead of the 2027 general elections, saying its involvement would complement the efforts of the APC and the Presidential Campaign Council.
The APC chairman urged the group to work with the party to mobilise voters across the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory, adding that electoral success required effective planning, strong structures and cooperation among 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.”
The APC chairman further urged Northern leaders to take advantage of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund to improve access to education in the region.
He called on the group to consider holding a press conference involving prominent northern political leaders to communicate their support for Tinubu and counter claims that the region was withdrawing its backing for the President.
Yilwatda said the party would work with the group to coordinate election planning and mobilisation, stressing that the objective should extend beyond the presidential poll to elections for the National Assembly, governorship and state Houses of Assembly.
Earlier, Shekarau said the A4A initiative was established to mobilise voters across Northern Nigeria and the FCT, identify areas of weak electoral performance and address factors contributing to voter apathy and low turnout.
He said the group had established about 20 directorates and appointed coordinators across the states, local government areas and wards to complement the party’s existing structures rather than operate separately from them.
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 announced that the group’s secretariat was scheduled to be inaugurated on October 17, with Vice-President Kashim Shettima expected to attend.
In his remarks, the Deputy Chairman of the A4A Board of Trustees, former Plateau State Governor Simon Lalong, described the group as being made up of experienced political leaders mobilising to support the APC and improve on its previous electoral performance.
He said former governors, legislators, serving ministers and other political figures were part of the initiative, adding that their experience would complement the party’s efforts ahead of the 2027 elections.