‘Tinubu -Shettima Ticket Most Formidable Political Combination In Nigeria’s History’
By Sunday Etuka
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has said the presidential ticket of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima is among the most formidable political combinations in Nigeria’s democratic history, and argued that Tinubu deserves a second term to consolidate his reforms and development drive.
Yilwatda spoke on Saturday at the Rainbow Coalition Presidential Campaign Rally held at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt, where Tinubu was received by an enthusiastic crowd of party supporters, political stakeholders and coalition members from Rivers State and the wider South-South region.
The rally formed part of the President’s ongoing nationwide mobilisation for the 2027 presidential election and gave the APC and its coalition partners another chance to show their commitment to the re-election of Tinubu and Shettima.
According to the APC chairman, the ticket combines political experience, courage, capacity and tested leadership, qualities he said can steer Nigeria through its present challenges toward sustainable economic growth and national prosperity.
His remarks were contained in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy, Abimbola Tooki.
“The most formidable presidential ticket we have ever produced in Nigeria is the Tinubu-Shettima ticket. We have a candidate in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who is fearless, courageous and determined to confront the challenges of our country.
He has demonstrated the capacity to take difficult decisions in the national interest, and he has remained resolute in pursuing the transformation of Nigeria,” Yilwatda said.
He said the President had faced enormous challenges since taking office and, rather than surrender, had taken decisive steps to tackle structural problems that have held back national development for decades.
Tinubu, he said, inherited a country struggling with serious fiscal and economic difficulties, including unsustainable fuel subsidy spending, revenue constraints and mounting obligations, and showed the political will to address them through hard but necessary reforms.
Yilwatda pointed to the removal of the fuel subsidy, the unification of the foreign exchange market and other policy adjustments as key parts of efforts to rebuild the economy, strengthen public finances and lay a more sustainable foundation for long-term growth.
He acknowledged that the reforms brought significant adjustments for households and businesses, but said the administration remained committed to easing their impact through economic stabilisation measures, social interventions, infrastructure investment and policies meant to widen opportunities for Nigerians.
The APC chairman also highlighted the administration’s infrastructure programme, especially the major highway corridors designed to improve connectivity, ease trade, cut transportation costs and link different parts of the country.
He said the proposed and ongoing superhighway projects show the President’s determination to use infrastructure as a catalyst for economic expansion and national integration.
“We have a President who understands that development cannot happen without infrastructure. He has initiated an ambitious infrastructure revolution through major highway projects that will connect different parts of Nigeria, open up economic corridors, facilitate the movement of goods and services and create new opportunities for our people.
“These are not merely road projects. They are investments in the future of our country, in agriculture, commerce, industrialisation, tourism and the prosperity of future generations,” he said.
Yilwatda urged Nigerians not to lose sight of the long-term goals of the Renewed Hope Agenda, insisting the reform path must be sustained so the administration can consolidate its policies and deliver greater benefits.
He described Tinubu as a reformer and performer who places national development above political convenience, and said the 2027 election offers Nigerians a choice of continuity, stability and consolidation of ongoing reforms.
On Rivers State, he expressed satisfaction with the growing political alignment behind the President’s re-election bid, noting that support had crossed traditional party lines.
He commended political leaders, stakeholders and members of the Rainbow Coalition for recognising the value of national unity, political cooperation and continuity, and said the emerging consensus in the state reflects a wider understanding that the success of the Tinubu administration serves the collective interest of Nigerians, whatever their party.
“Come 2027, we want to continue with this reformer and performer as our President. That is why the coalition and the people of Rivers State, irrespective of political party, have decided to work together for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” he said.
Confident that Rivers would become a major stronghold of the re-election campaign, Yilwatda credited the mobilisation capacity of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike, and other leaders and stakeholders in the state.
“Come January 2027, Rivers State will stand still. With the mobilisation capacity of the Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, the Honourable Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike, and other political leaders and stakeholders, we are confident that Rivers will deliver maximum votes for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“We are looking forward to a situation where every part of this country will feel the impact of the prosperity that the consolidation of these reforms will bring. By the grace of God, we shall return after the election to give thanks for a renewed mandate and a brighter future for Nigeria,” he added.
