Ex-ANPP Members Back Tinubu-Shettima, Seek APC Presidency In 2031

Former members of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) now in the All Progressives Congress (APC) have backed the 2027 presidential ticket of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima, while demanding that the ruling party’s presidency be ceded to the ANPP bloc in 2031.

The group, under the Association of Former ANPP Members in APC, made the demand in a communique issued after its meeting in Abuja on Monday.

The communique, signed by the National Coordinator of the association, Prof. Vitalis Orikeze Ajumbe, said the ANPP bloc had made significant contributions to the formation of the APC and should be given a greater share of political opportunities within the party.

The group argued that the political arrangement within the APC since its formation had not adequately reflected the contributions of its legacy parties.

It said the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) bloc had produced former President Muhammadu Buhari, who governed the country for eight years, while the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) bloc currently occupies the presidency through Tinubu.

The former ANPP members therefore argued that the bloc should produce Tinubu’s successor in 2031.

“Fairness and equity demand that our President should hand over power to the ANPP bloc when his tenure expires in 2031,” the group said.

The demand comes ahead of the 2027 general election, although the group pledged its support for Tinubu’s re-election bid and the APC.

It said its position was based on the contributions of the legacy parties that dissolved their individual identities and surrendered their certificates of registration to form the APC.

The association recalled that at its meeting on November 3, 2025, it had presented a number of demands to Tinubu, including greater representation of former ANPP members in strategic government appointments.

According to the group, the demands included appointments as ministers, ambassadors, board chairmen and heads of government agencies and departments.

It also called for the retention of the vice-presidential position within the former ANPP bloc, which it described as the second-largest contributor to the formation of the APC.

The group said the retention of Shettima as Tinubu’s running mate for the 2027 election represented one of the responses to its demands.

It also cited the appointment of Senator Abdulaziz Abubakar Yari as Director-General of Tinubu’s 2027 Presidential Campaign Council and the appointment of Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, as Deputy Director 1, North, as further indications of the bloc’s representation.

However, the former ANPP members said they were still seeking the appointment of more of their members to key positions in government.

Beyond the 2027 election, the association urged Tinubu to support a presidential candidate from the former ANPP bloc, preferably from northern Nigeria, to succeed him in 2031.

The group nevertheless said its immediate priority was to secure victory for Tinubu and the APC in the 2027 presidential election.

It said its members across the country had been encouraged to remain patient with the administration and the APC following its November 2025 meeting, adding that some of the concerns raised had since received attention.

The forum also ratified its leadership structure, retaining Ajumbe as National Coordinator and appointing Dr Umar Duhu as Deputy National Coordinator.

It further endorsed the incumbent Deputy Governor of Yobe State, Idi Barde Gubana, as its National leader.