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From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi and Chidiebere Onyemaizu
The 2027 presidential campaign is generating competing reactions across Nigeria, with a Benue-based political group protesting the alleged exclusion of Tiv members from the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, while Niger Delta youths have welcomed the appointment of Ochiglegor Idagbo to coordinate support groups in the South-South.
The contrasting reactions came as the APC intensifies preparations for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign and moves to strengthen its structures across the country ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Hembe/Abba Gubernatorial Campaign Organisation in Benue State said the composition of the campaign council raised concerns over what it described as the inadequate representation of the Tiv people in the ruling party’s national political calculations.
In a statement signed by Peter Vande, the organisation alleged that the absence of Tiv members from the council was deliberate and warned that the development could affect the relationship between the Tiv people and the APC ahead of the election.
“The recent release of the presidential campaign council list by the Tinubu APC has exposed a deliberate and calculated exclusion of the Tiv people from national reckoning,” the group said.
“This is not an oversight. This is a message, and every Tiv person, every Benue son and daughter, must read it correctly.”
The organisation said the Tiv had made significant contributions to Nigeria’s political development and national unity and should be deliberately considered in the composition of structures driving the ruling party’s presidential campaign.
It argued that the absence of Tiv representation should prompt questions among the people of Benue about the extent to which the community could expect political representation under a renewed APC administration.
The group also invoked a traditional Tiv story to illustrate what it described as the need for the people not to seek recognition where they were not being courted.
It nevertheless maintained that the Tiv should not be treated as an afterthought in national political calculations, describing the group as one of Nigeria’s major ethnic communities with a long history of participation in national affairs.
The organisation linked the issue to the political future of Benue, saying fair representation should form part of the considerations of the people in determining their political choices in 2027.
It said Herman Hembe remained committed to the welfare, security and political interests of Benue people.
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The group subsequently urged the people of the state to consider the African Democratic Congress (ADC), whose presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, it described as a politician familiar with the concerns of the Tiv people.
It also expressed support for an Atiku/Amaechi ticket, claiming that such an administration would restore what it described as the rightful political position of the Tiv and Benue people.
While the Benue group criticised the APC campaign council’s composition, the Niger Delta Youth Assembly welcomed the appointment of Idagbo as Zonal Coordinator, Support Group Coordination, South-South, describing it as a strategic move that would strengthen the party’s mobilisation across the region.
The National Coordinator of the group, Bedford Berefa Benjamin, said in a statement issued in Port Harcourt that Idagbo’s experience in grassroots mobilisation, governance and legislative affairs positioned him for the assignment.
Benjamin said Idagbo had built extensive political and administrative experience through his involvement in student leadership, local government administration, the Cross River State Executive Council and the National Assembly.
He recalled that Idagbo served as Secretary of Council and two-term Chairman of Bekwarra Local Government Area of Cross River State before becoming Chairman of the Council of Chairmen of the state’s 18 local government areas.
His tenure as Commissioner for Works in Cross River State, Benjamin said, further exposed him to infrastructure development, project monitoring and public administration.
He added that Idagbo’s two terms in the House of Representatives gave him additional national and legislative experience, including his tenure as Chairman of the House Committee on Local Content.
“His years in the National Assembly gave him a deep understanding of the political, economic and developmental realities of the South-South region,” Benjamin said.
“He understands the peculiarities of the six states and has built relationships with political leaders, traditional rulers, community leaders, youth and women groups and other critical stakeholders across the region.”
The group expressed confidence that Idagbo would use his political network and knowledge of the region to coordinate support groups and strengthen mobilisation for Tinubu’s re-election campaign.
It also commended Tinubu, Vice-President Kashim Shettima, Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu and other South-South governors and political stakeholders for their support for the appointment.
The contrasting reactions highlight the political pressures facing the APC as it seeks to build a broad-based campaign structure ahead of the 2027 election, with questions of regional representation and the effectiveness of its mobilisation structures emerging alongside the party’s efforts to defend Tinubu’s record and secure support across the country.
