From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has passionately appealed for the cooperation and support of all party members to enable the party win more states and ensure that President Bola Tinubu secures fresh mandate after the 2027 general elections.
Ganduje also emphasised the urgent need for party stakeholders to engage on massive sensitisation of Nigerians to properly understand the challenges, efforts and commitment of President Tinubu towards addressing the challenges facing the country.
He spoke on Saturday at the APC North-central stakeholders meeting, held in Lafia, Nasarawa state, assuring that his leadership will “set new standards and benchmarks in the nation’s democratic sphere to sustain the continuation of APC government at all levels.”
The high-profile meeting had attendance the Governors of Kwara, Nasarawa, Kogi, Benue States and Deputy Governor of Niger State, immediate-past National Chairman of the APC, Abdullahi Adamu, former Nasarawa state governor Tanko Almakura, former Deputy Speaker Idris Wase, Senator Banabas Gemade, Minister of Steel Development, Shaibu Abubakar Audu, Minister of Special Duty, Minister of State, Police, all party state chairmen, among several others.
The forner governor of Kano State also called on all the stakeholders of the party and Nigerians to continue to rally support for President Tinubu, adding that the President has not only initiated new projects, but almost completed most of the projects he inherited from the previous administration.
He said: “I would like to reaffirm my commitment to the ideals of our great party to set new standards and benchmarks in the nation’s democratic sphere to ensure the sustenance and continuation of the APC government at all levels.
“Even though it is not yet an election period, we are reinvigorating the party to ensure that come 2027, we will retain and get new state governors, as well as Mr President to secure another mandate to continue with his government’s policies and programmes.
“On the party affair, you may recall that in my inaugural address, I made a commitment to strengthen unity in our party by working hard individually and collectively. However, for me to succeed, I want to passionately appeal for the cooperation and support of all party members.
“While we are structuring our party into a truly grassroots progressive party, may I also appeal to our governors to support the state party leadership by ensuring that all the state party offices at the ward, local government and state levels are fully functional .
“This will enable our members across the country to have symbolic representation in their neighborhood. It will also facilitate party activities to roll out all year round, without necessarily waiting till during campaigns or elections. Another commitment I made is the e-registration of our members. The exercise will be launched in Niger State on a date to be announced.
“To achieve these noble objectives, the national secretariat has asked for one nomination from each Senatorial zone of the country for training and step down. Therefore, state party leadership should also liaise with their state Governors to nominate persons who have the capacity to learn and impact such knowledge at their respective states,” he appealed.
Similarly, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, who stood in for President Tinubu reassured stakeholders of the party of the President’s tremendous regard for the North-central geopolitical zone.
Reminiscing the contribution of the zone to the unity of the country over the years, he revealed that; “the President would soon take appropriate action to address alleged lopsidedness of appointments and infrastructural development of the zone.”
Referring to the appointments of party faithful into key ministerial seats, Akume said that; “the President is keen in ensuring the completion of ongoing work on the Akwanga-Jos, Abuja -Lokoja, and the Makurdi-Enugu federal highways.”
Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and the North Central zonal coordinator, Abdulrahman Abdulrazak, who recounted the successes recorded by the party in the zone in the 2023 poll, stressed the need to sustain the winning streak of the party.
He called on party faithful to work assiduously to ensure the passage of the North Central Developmental Commission required to harness the rich minerals and agricultural resources in the zone.
