By Duchess Ifeoluwa
The All Progressives Congress (APC), on Thursday began its South-West presidential campaign for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, with its leaders rallying supporters in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, and setting an ambitious target of 10 million votes for the President in the region.
The campaign rally, held at the Ekiti Parapo Pavilion, brought together Vice-President Kashim Shettima, the APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, governors, former governors, National Assembly members and other prominent party leaders from across the country.
Lagos State Governor and South-West Zonal Coordinator of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, attended the rally with his wife, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, joining other party chieftains to mobilise support for Tinubu and APC candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Addressing the gathering, Shettima, who represented the President, defended the administration’s economic reforms, describing them as necessary steps towards rebuilding the country and putting the economy on a sustainable growth path.
He acknowledged the difficulties Nigerians had experienced as a result of the reforms but maintained that the government remained committed to addressing the challenges and delivering on its promises.
The Vice-President urged the people of the South-West to support Tinubu’s re-election bid, saying the administration deserved another opportunity to consolidate its policies and programmes.
The APC National Chairman, Yilwatda, also canvassed support for the President, describing his administration as one committed to reforms and national development.
He highlighted some of the Federal Government’s interventions in education and taxation, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which provides financial assistance to eligible students in tertiary institutions.
Yilwatda said the government’s tax reforms were designed to ease the burden on low-income earners and small businesses, urging Nigerians to look beyond the immediate difficulties associated with the reforms and consider their long-term objectives.
The rally also witnessed an endorsement of Tinubu by some former governorship candidates who contested the last Ekiti State governorship election on the platforms of opposition parties.
The candidates, who reportedly included those of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Allied Peoples Movement (APM), declared their support for the President, citing the need for national unity and continued development.
Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, pledged that the state would deliver at least 90 per cent of its votes to Tinubu in the January 16, 2027 presidential election.
He urged party leaders and members to take the campaign to the grassroots, stressing the importance of translating the large turnout at the rally into actual votes on election day.
Other APC leaders, including former Edo State Governor and Senator, Adams Oshiomhole, and the Director-General of the Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, also called on Nigerians to support Tinubu’s re-election.
Oshiomhole argued that continuity would enable the administration to consolidate its policies, while Yari urged voters across the South-West to rally behind the President.
The gathering attracted a large crowd of serving and former public office-holders, party members and residents of Ekiti State, who turned out to demonstrate their support for the APC and its candidates.
