- Tinubu to APC Governors: Follow Electoral Act, Deliver Credible Primaries
- Says No Room for Rancour
- Abdulrasaq said the President’s position reflects confidence in the governors and a willingness to allow states manage
President Bola Tinubu has asked the 32 governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress to ensure that the party’s primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections are free, fair and free of internal conflict.
Eko Hot Blog reports that the directive was given during a closed-door meeting with the governors at the Presidential Villa on Thursday, April 23.
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According to the President, the move is aimed at aligning with the provisions of the Electoral Act while also preserving unity within the ruling party as it prepares for the next election cycle.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, and his Niger State counterpart, Mohammed Bago, said discussions focused on strengthening party cohesion, especially after recent internal processes.
AbdulRazaq, who also chairs the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, said:
“We came to thank the President for his magnanimity and his support to the governors and for our party, the APC. He gave us a matching order on what to do, and for him also to have given and ceded his executive power to the governors to go ahead and conduct primaries based on the Electoral Act, either through consensus or direct primaries.”
He noted that the President’s position reflects confidence in the governors and a willingness to allow states manage their internal processes within the framework of the law.
On his part, Bago said the President reaffirmed his backing for the governors’ approach and confirmed that the timetable for the primaries had already been released.
“So he’s retracted his support for our decision, and he has given us a go-ahead to go ahead. Meeting with Mr President, I met with Mr President, the timetable for the primaries has been released.
“We’ve discussed the process moving forward so that there’ll be free and fair elections, no rancour at the end of the process. The party should be stronger, stronger than ever heading towards the election,” he said.
Several governors were present at the meeting, including Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, Hope Uzodimma, alongside Inuwa Yahaya, Babagana Zulum, Hyacinth Alia, Biodun Oyebanji, Peter Mbah, and AbdulRazaq, while some states were represented by their deputy governors.
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