President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday got the nod as the ‘sole candidate’ of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 race.
The party leadership, the APC’s 22 governors and federal lawmakers gave the President a pass mark after his mid-term assessment and decided he should run for re-election.
The President accepted the offer ‘gladly’ and pledged that greater and better days are ahead for Nigerians.
This took place at the Conference Centre in Abuja during the maiden APC Summit – an event organised by the ruling party which brought National Working Committee (NWC) members together with the Executive, the Legislature and governors to assess the performance of the Federal Government in two years.
Ministers Mohammed Idris (Information), David Umahi (Works) and Mohammed Ali Pate (Health), along with National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu gave the scorecard of the Federal Government before more than 2,000 leaders of the party and elected and appointed officials.
Apart from the President and Vice President Kashim Shettima, elders, such as former Interim National Chairman Chief Bisi Akande and former Ogun State Governor Chief Olusegun Osoba also attended.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) George Akume and Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq (Kwara) addressed the gathering.
The endorsement of the President was triggered by Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum Hope Uzodimma (Imo), a former senator, who, employing the Senate procedure, moved the ‘motion’ after reviewing the performance of the President which he rated highly, that he should be endorsed to run for a second term.
Uzodimma invited the Vice Chairman of PGF, another former senator, Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani, to step forward and second his motion, which he promptly did, and the hall erupted in applause.
Next, Senate President Godswill Akpabio equally endorsed the President on behalf of federal lawmakers.
National Chairman Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje rounded off by calling other members of the NWC to stand by him on the podium to make what he called the ‘mother of all endorsements’.
He did this after reading his address, which touched on the president’s performance, the state of the party, and defections, which he said are coming ‘out of conviction and not out of convenience’, among other issues.
Moving the motion for endorsement on behalf of the federal legislators, Akpabio said: “I move that the President be returned as the sole candidate of the APC in 2027 and as the President of Nigeria. I so move.”
It was seconded by House of Representatives Speaker Abbas Tajudeen, who hailed President Tinubu for the dawn of a new era.
Ganduje, who announced the APC leadership endorsement, said: “As the chairman of the party and on behalf of the NWC – the only recognised platform, I believe, legally, to field a candidate in any election – I hereby affirm the various endorsements and declare President Bola Tinubu as the sole presidential candidate of the APC.”