2027: Why I Won’t Visit All States To Campaign – Tinubu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said he will not visit every state to campaign for his re-election in 2027, insisting that governance must continue while the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council takes his message to Nigerians across the country.

Tinubu said Nigeria needed his attention more than ever, adding that the responsibilities of his office would not stop because of election campaigns.

The President spoke on Wednesday at the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council at the State House Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said he would make time to speak directly to Nigerians but expected members of the campaign council to lead mobilisation efforts in their respective states and local government areas.

“You have warned me and asked 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,” Tinubu said.

“Nigeria needs more attention now than ever before. The responsibility of this office does not pause.”

Explaining why he would not accompany campaign officials everywhere, the President said the government had financial obligations to meet and needed to continue attracting investors.

“However, I will still make time to speak directly with Nigerians, even as you lead the campaign in the states and local government areas. So you will excuse me from going everywhere with you,” he said.

“We have bills to pay. The American creditors cannot wait. We want those investors to come in, be here to stay, to invest for the future of our children.”

Tinubu charged the campaign council to take the party’s message to every corner of the country, saying the inauguration was more than the establishment of a campaign structure.

“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.

The President promised that the APC would not disappoint Nigerians, adding that the campaign council was expected to communicate the administration’s record, vision and agenda to voters in every ward.

He also warned party leaders against celebrating electoral victory before completing their assignment, urging them to deliver votes at the grassroots.

“I thank all of you for the last election, but no one, 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,” Tinubu said.

He commended party members for their participation in the APC’s congresses and the process of selecting its leadership from the ward level to the national level.

The President also reiterated his commitment to the party’s manifesto and objectives, describing himself as an errand man of the party.

Meanwhile, Vice President Kashim Shettima criticised the economic proposals of opposition figures Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, arguing that Nigeria could not be governed with statistics and economic prescriptions detached from the country’s realities.

Shettima described Obi as a “master of bogus statistics and incoherent economic prescriptions,” questioning the suitability of the former Anambra State governor’s economic arguments for addressing Nigeria’s challenges.

He also questioned whether Atiku’s presidential ambition was matched by the character and discipline required for leadership.

The Vice President called for a campaign focused on issues, records and policies rather than personal attacks, urging political actors to conduct themselves with respect as the country approaches the 2027 general election.

Shettima also defended the Tinubu administration’s economic reform programme, particularly the removal of petrol subsidy and changes to the foreign exchange system, arguing that the policies were necessary and should be protected.

He said the reform momentum should not be squandered, stressing that the benefits of the policies must translate into jobs, improved earnings and better economic opportunities for Nigerians.

Citing economic growth of 4.2 per cent in the first half of 2026, Shettima argued that the administration’s reform agenda needed time to produce further results.

He maintained that Tinubu deserved a second term, warning against abandoning the reform process before its potential benefits had been fully realised.