President Bola Tinubu has said he will not accompany the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council to every campaign event ahead of the 2027 general election, citing the need to prioritise governance, economic obligations and efforts to attract investors.
Tinubu made the declaration on Wednesday in Abuja while inaugurating the APC Presidential Campaign Council, urging its members to lead the party’s mobilisation efforts across the country while he continued to attend to matters of state.
The President said he agreed with concerns that the demands of electioneering should not interfere with his responsibility to govern, stressing that Nigeria required his attention at the moment.
“You’ve warned me not to allow the rigour of the campaign to distract me from governance, I hear you. I am in full agreement with your decision. Nigeria needs more attention now,” Tinubu said.
He subsequently asked members of the council to understand that he would be unable to attend every campaign outing, pointing to the country’s financial commitments and obligations to foreign creditors.
“So, you will excuse me from going everywhere with you, we have bills to pay. The American creditors cannot wait,” the President said.
Tinubu also emphasised the importance of attracting investors willing to establish sustainable businesses and make long-term commitments to Nigeria’s economic development.
“We want those investors to come in, be here to stay, to invest for the future of our children,” he said.
Despite his decision to limit his participation in campaign tours, the President assured Nigerians that he would still find opportunities to address them directly as the council coordinated activities at the state and local government levels.
“However, I will still make time to speak directly with Nigerians, even as you lead the campaign in the states and local government areas,” he said.
Describing the inauguration as a significant political commitment beyond the formal establishment of a campaign structure, Tinubu said the exercise represented a renewed pledge to Nigerians and the responsibilities of the APC as the governing party.
“We have not gathered merely to inaugurate a council. We have gathered to renew a covenant. A covenant with Nigerian people and the historic responsibility they have entrusted to us as Nigeria’s governing party,” he said.
He charged the council to take the administration’s vision, achievements and policy agenda to voters across the country, expressing confidence in its ability to secure victory for the party.
“This council will carry our vision, our records and our agenda to every Nigerian, and it will carry them to victory every ward of this country,” Tinubu said.
The President also congratulated party members on the completion of the APC congresses, recalling predictions that the exercise could trigger a major internal crisis.
According to him, the party had overcome the anticipated challenges and completed the process, with members participating from the ward level through to the national leadership.
“They said there will be implosion. We passed through it. We did not fail. You didn’t let us down. We got here together,” he said.
He also urged members of the council to secure votes across their respective wards in the 2027 general election, saying that their contributions would not count until they deliver at the polls.
“No one gets credit for an incomplete assignment. So, until you deliver the next election, until you deliver your wards, until you deliver the votes, before we can say thank you,” he said.
The President, who expressed gratitude to party members for their support in the previous election, said the inauguration was more than a formal gathering, describing it as a renewed commitment to Nigerians.
“The APC is ready. We have not gathered merely to inaugurate a council; we have gathered to renew a covenant, a covenant with the Nigerian people and the historic responsibility they have entrusted to us as Nigeria’s governing party. We promise we will not let them down,” he said.
Tinubu also expressed confidence in the party’s ability to secure victory, asking members whether they were ready for the task ahead.
“I celebrate you. I celebrate you, no doubt about that. Nigeria will continue to celebrate you. You will see the joy of this victory. You will share in the joy,” he said.