Follow Us on Google
From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has predicted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) will sweep the South-South geopolitical zone in the January 16, 2027 elections, expressing confidence that Rivers State will lead the way by delivering President Bola Tinubu and other party candidates.
Akpabio attributed his optimism to the prevailing peace and political unity in Rivers State, saying the presence of political leaders and stakeholders at the Rivers State Rainbow Coalition rally demonstrated the region’s readiness to support the Tinubu administration.
The Senate President spoke on Saturday at the rally held at the main bowl of Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
According to him, peace was the major ingredient required to secure victory for Tinubu in the region.
“Mr President, the ingredient needed in this zone, particularly Rivers State, to return you to the Villa on the 16th of January, 2027, is here and that is peace.
“There is total peace in Rivers State and it’s based on that peace and unity among all stakeholders and political leaders on display today from the zone that Mr President would be delivered,” he said.
Akpabio recalled that Rivers was the only state in the South South where the APC secured victory in the 2023 presidential election, expressing confidence that the state would again deliver for Tinubu.
“In 2023, this was one state that you won resoundingly. It was not a question of 25 per cent. In the whole of the South South, it was in Rivers State that President Bola Tinubu won resoundingly,” he said.
He urged the people to sustain their support for Tinubu, arguing that the appointment of Wike as FCT Minister and his performance in Abuja were sufficient reasons for Rivers State to back the President.
“President Tinubu loves Rivers people and that is why he handed a very strategic ministry, the FCT, to your son and he has not disappointed us.
“I want to thank you for producing Nyesom Wike, who is doing wonders in the FCT. We have never seen such level of development before. Mr President is a man who knows how to put square pegs in square holes,” Akpabio said.
He also listed the student loan scheme, economic reforms, infrastructure development and increased revenue from taxation among the achievements of the Tinubu administration which, according to him, should attract votes for the President.
“For the students of Rivers State, over one hundred thousand of you have benefitted from the Students Loan Fund, the educational funds for indigent students and those from less privileged families who would not have gone to school,” he said.
On the economy, Akpabio said Tinubu had inherited a difficult economic situation but had increased the country’s foreign reserves from $4.5 billion to over $50 billion.
He also commended the President’s tax reforms, saying the unification of the country’s tax system had improved government revenue.
“On tax reforms, we had taxes in Nigeria that were codified as far back as 1939. You came and unified the tax system and today Nigeria is getting more money from taxation than from crude oil,” he said.
Akpabio further cited the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, which passes through Rivers State, as another reason the people should support the administration, arguing that it would stimulate economic and commercial activities along the coastline.
He defended the removal of fuel subsidy, saying it was intended to check corruption, while urging the people of the South South to continue supporting the Tinubu administration.
“We will continue to campaign despite the fact we are a very popular party and the government of the day,” he said.
The Senate President expressed optimism that the political gatherings in Akwa Ibom and Rivers states would translate into electoral victory for the APC, praying that Tinubu and the party would have cause to celebrate after the January 16, 2027 polls.
