North divided over Tinubu re-election as leaders take sides

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The prospect of President Bola Tinubu being re-elected in 2027 has caused division among Northern leaders.According to Sunday PUNCH’s findings, the once-uniform North is now divided, with northern minorities supporting Tinubu’s reelection and core northerners aiming to overthrow him in 2027.

According to our correspondents, minority groups contend that they have benefited much from the President’s administration, despite core northerners’ complaints about his unfavorable attitude toward the area.

Many Plateau State locals, Hausa Christians in Northern Nigeria, people from the Middle Belt, and those from southern Kaduna have disassociated themselves from the plot to remove Tinubu.

Nonetheless, Tinubu is not deserving of a second term, according to core northerners, who are represented by a number of political, sociocultural, and indigenous groups.

Social media interactions between former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and human rights advocate Senator Shehu Sani, who often voice divergent opinions on Tinubu’s handling of northern problems, especially security, reveal the rift among northern stakeholders.

Together with a number of well-known northern leaders, the Arewa Consultative Forum, a significant political and cultural organization in Northern Nigeria, stated that the region could not be forced to re-elect Tinubu.

Murtala Aliyu, the group’s secretary general, told Sunday PUNCH that the forum would not back or oppose any candidate and would stay impartial.

The ACF was reacting to a recent declaration made by Abdullahi Ganduje, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, who called on northern leaders who wanted to run for president to give up their hopes since Tinubu would serve for two terms.

“What we normally do at ACF is to highlight critical issues that the people should consider when choosing a candidate, irrespective of their political party. We do not involve ourselves in promoting or antagonising any candidate,” Aliyu said.

Members of the APC, Peoples Democratic Party, and New Nigeria Peoples Party from the north, known as the League of Northern Democrats, promised to back a different candidate in 2027. “We don’t have a personal agenda against Tinubu, but we believe his government has not delivered,” stated Ladan Salihu, the group’s spokesperson.

The performance measures do not stack up to justify northern support. “The government has not met expectations, and we in the North are not convinced he deserves another opportunity. Even those who voted for him are now filled with regret. His administration has brought hardship, poverty and agony to the people.

“No northerner with a conscience can claim to be impressed with Tinubu’s performance. He may have the best intentions, but the system he is working with is flawed and unsustainable. It cannot deliver on the promises he made to the North.”

Additionally, Salihu alluded to the potential for a new political organization to challenge Tinubu in 2027 with a candidate from the north. “Yes, there is a possibility, because we are not convinced that this government can lift Nigeria out of its current predicament,” he said.

In a similar vein, the National Coalition of Northern Groups threatened that if economic conditions did not improve, the North would not support Tinubu.The coalition’s president, Jamilu Charanchi, told Sunday PUNCH that if economic hardship continued, the North, which has the majority of votes, would not re-elect Tinubu.

“It is the people who will decide who leads the country—there is no doubt about that. The North has a majority. It is up to President Tinubu to make the right decisions so that people will re-elect him. If he continues on this path, I can tell you clearly that people will not vote for him,” he said.

Charanchi urged Nigerians to cast informed ballots, advising them to select leaders based on their ability, competence, moral character, and respect for the law.

He said, “Nigerians should not allow themselves to be manipulated by politicians. They should vote based on merit and mobilise others to elect leaders who will lift the country out of its current crisis.”

Ganduje’s remark, according to Charanchi, was concerning and discouraging since it showed the APC chairman was out of touch with reality. “Is he satisfied with Nigeria’s failing economy? Does he believe these failures are acceptable or justified?” he asked.

Babachir Lawal, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, had previously alluded to northern attempts to overthrow Tinubu in 2027.Lawal recently announced that he would collaborate with El-Rufai to stop Tinubu from being re-elected.In an interview, Lawal attributed the escalation of poverty and adversity in Northern Nigeria on Tinubu’s economic policies.

“The North is seriously mobilising with a consensus that Bola Tinubu must step down in the 2027 election. There is no doubt about this consensus.“I may not have always agreed with El-Rufai, but on this issue, I will join him to stop Tinubu from winning the 2027 election. If Tinubu wins, northern Nigeria will turn into one large refugee camp,” he said.

Ahead of the 2027 election, El-Rufai posted on his X handle a statement from Uche Diala, a party chieftain, warning Tinubu that he could suffer the same fate as former President Goodluck Jonathan if he did not exercise caution. The article stated, “I have read and heard the arrogant posturing and braggadocio by some people who I refer to as political rabble-rousers, but I get more worried each day as it keeps looking more and more like a movie we had seen before.

“May I remind some persons that, more than the performance or lack thereof of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, it was his attitude, and that of people around him, towards the North that ultimately brought him down and by extension the PDP that had boasted that it would rule Nigeria for 60 years.”

On his Xhandle, El-Rufai personally criticized the APC, bemoaning the absence of internal democracy and dynamic party institutions.

He wrote “I no longer recognise the APC. No party organ has met in two years—no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it is a one-man show; it’s a zero-man show.” The northern minorities, however, disassociated themselves from the plan to remove Tinubu. “The region has decided to support a southern presidency in 2027,” said the Middle Belt Forum, one of the prominent northern minority groups.

Despite ongoing economic difficulties, the MBF said that the region has benefited more from the current administration than from former President Muhammadu Buhari.According to the MBF’s spokeswoman, Luka Binniyat, the Middle Belt has obtained more political appointments at the national level and more infrastructural projects than under the previous government.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume (Benue State), and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, Prof. Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda (Plateau State), are two Middle Belt natives in Tinubu’s cabinet, according to Sunday PUNCH. “We are having a better deal under Bola Tinubu than under Buhari, even though we are all experiencing economic hardship like everyone else.

“The Middle Belt Forum, for sure, still stands for a southern presidency in 2027. So, it is up to President Tinubu to up his game to attract the Middle Belt when an alternative candidate emerges in 2027,” Binniyat said.

Indigenous Hausa Christians in Northern Nigeria also distanced themselves from the 2027 plot to overthrow Tinubu, declaring that they would not be coerced into a choice that would have a detrimental effect on their people’s socioeconomic welfare.The Christian organization claimed that Tinubu’s government had shown a dedication to tackling the instability that has afflicted numerous northern states.

“All we want at the moment is inclusivity, as we have many qualified individuals and seasoned politicians capable of holding political office.“ Instead of calling for the President’s removal in 2027, we are urging him to consider some of our people for appointments, as we refuse to inherit anyone’s enemies,” said the National Chairman of the group, Daniel Musa.

A few Plateau State natives also expressed their support for Tinubu’s second term.The indigenous people of Jos, speaking to Sunday PUNCH on behalf of the Plateau Initiative for the Development and Advancement of the Natives, recognized the President’s contributions to the growth of their area.

Dickson Auta, the association’s secretary general, stated, “He (Tinubu) has indeed shown that he is a detribalised leader because he has been striving to spread developmental projects across every part of the country.“

Our people are only concerned about good governance, and if Mr President continues on this developmental path, I am sure our people will have no choice but to support his ambition in 2027 should he decide to run for a second term. In fact, we are already supporting him.”

Also, the Southern Kaduna People’s Union applauded Tinubu for nominating individuals from Southern Kaduna to crucial roles.

The creation of the Federal University of Applied Science, Kachia, and the nomination of Gen. Christopher Musa as Chief of Defence Staff are two instances of the President’s inclusivity that have benefited the people of Southern Kaduna, according to Josiah Abraks, a spokesperson for SOKAPU. “The southern part of Kaduna is willing to partner with whoever is ready to work with us to ensure our growth and development,” he added.

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