Northern Leaders Back Tinubu for 2027, Say North Won’t Seek Power Yet

Northern leaders under the Northern Bridge Builders Forum pledge full support for President Tinubu in 2027.
The group insists that power should remain in the South after Buhari’s eight-year rule.
Afenifere leader Pa Reuben Fasoranti hails the move as a step toward national unity.
ADC and PDP northern elders fault APC, accusing it of political terrorism and internal sabotage.

Some northern leaders have declared strong support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election, saying the region remains committed to fairness and unity.

The group, under the banner of the Northern Bridge Builders Forum, said their decision to back Tinubu was based on his efforts to stabilise the economy and curb insecurity across the nation.

During a visit to Afenifere leader Pa Reuben Fasoranti in Akure, Ondo State, the convener, Senator Joel Dantami Iheny, said the North has no justification to seek power again after the eight-year tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari.

“We believe in equity. Buhari did eight years for the North, and Tinubu should complete his eight years for the South. For us to demand power now would be unfair and against our conscience,” Iheny said.

He noted that Tinubu’s government deserves continued support, especially for its resolve to confront insecurity. “The president is facing it head-on. The North will give him more votes in 2027 than in 2023,” he added.

Responding, Pa Fasoranti, represented by former SGF and traditional ruler Oba Olu Falae, described the northern leaders’ visit as a bridge-building effort vital to national harmony. “No ethnic group is too small to be ignored. Building bridges across regions is the only way Nigeria can truly thrive,” he said.

Meanwhile, not all political voices share this optimism. Senator Dino Melaye of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) dismissed defections to the APC as irrelevant to 2027 outcomes. He said the 2023 election proved that Nigerians have moved beyond political structures controlled by governors.

“The illusion that power flows from governors is gone. Voters now act by conviction, not coercion,” Melaye said, predicting that worsening hardship would make 2027 “a reckoning.”

Melaye also warned that the APC and PDP risk implosion due to corruption and internal rifts, insisting that the ADC offers a people-driven alternative.

“The next election will be between citizens and the establishment,” he said.

In a related statement, the ADC accused the ruling APC of “political terrorism” following the burning of its secretariat in Ado-Ekiti. The party said the attack was part of a wider campaign to intimidate opposition members before the 2027 polls.

National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi said: “The arson was a deliberate attempt to silence opposition voices. It is a disgrace to democratic values.”

He linked the attack to similar incidents in Lagos, Kaduna, Kebbi, Kogi, and Edo states, warning that such violence threatened the country’s political stability.

Also, the PDP Northern Elders Unity Forum accused FCT Minister Nyesom Wike of plotting to destabilise the party. The Forum’s secretary, Dr Abbas Sadauki, said Wike and his allies were aligning with outside forces to weaken opposition unity.

“We won’t allow these elements to destroy the PDP. Those who align with them will face political regret,” he warned.

Sadauki reaffirmed loyalty to the PDP Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum, and urged President Tinubu and the judiciary to guard against political manipulation.

“The attempt to derail democracy must fail. We stand by the PDP leadership ahead of 2027,” he stated.