Hope Uzodimma, governor of Imo and chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), has warned All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders against complacency ahead of the 2027 general election.
Uzodimma spoke in Abuja on Wednesday at the inauguration of
the APC presidential campaign council at the Presidential Villa.
The governor, who is secretary of the campaign council, said
the election would serve as a referendum on President Bola Tinubu and every
other APC candidate.
“Mr President will be on the ballot on 16 January 2027, but
if we are honest with ourselves, so will we,” he said.
“This election is as much a referendum on every APC official
present here as it is on the presidency, and I include myself in that without
reservation.
“It follows that our party has no excuse not to win. Victory
is guaranteed when we are united, committed and work as a focused team.”
Uzodimma urged party leaders to resolve their differences
and work together ahead of the election.
“We must jettison any misgivings we have against each other.
We must reconcile any differences we may have and rally as one family behind
the party and all our candidates,” he said.
He said the APC had significant political advantages,
including control of the federal government, majorities in both chambers of the
national assembly and governors in 31 states.
According to the governor, the party’s position places a
responsibility on its leaders to secure electoral victory rather than blame
unfavourable conditions.
“The Nigerian people have given us every advantage a
political party could reasonably ask for, and Mr President has made our task
easier still by giving us a record we can defend with pride,” he said.
“Having received that much, none of us can afterwards turn
round and say the conditions were against us.”
Uzodimma also urged governors, local government chairmen,
legislators and party executives to intensify campaigns in their respective
areas.
He said local government chairmen were particularly
important because of their proximity to voters, adding that the outcome would
depend partly on mobilisation at the ward level.
He cautioned APC leaders against assuming that the party’s
extensive political structure automatically translated into popular support.
“A party that controls every tier of government can easily
grow comfortable and begin to mistake the size of its structure for the depth
of its support,” he said.
“But as critical as structures are, it is citizens who vote,
and each one of them has to be persuaded.”
He called on the party to ensure peaceful and lawful
campaigning, saying the conduct of the ruling party would set the tone for the
election.
“The success of any one of us cannot be built on the failure
of another, and every candidate who carries our flag deserves the full support
of the whole party. Our unity should be unassailable,” he added.
The APC announced an expanded list of its presidential
campaign council on Tuesday, including Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal
Capital Territory (FCT); Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun; and Chukwuma
Soludo, governor of Anambra, among several notable additions.
In the new list, Wike was appointed coordinator of the
party’s campaign in Rivers and the FCT.
Soludo was appointed coordinator for Anambra, while Adeleke
is named coordinator for Osun. Adegboyega Oyetola, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, was named deputy national coordinator for stakeholders’ mobilisation
in the south-west.
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