Report by Obinna Ejianya (9News Nigeria – Abuja)
Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has predicted President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, while urging members of the All Progressives Congress presidential campaign team to reduce the number of people accompanying the president to rallies and concentrate on mobilising support in their respective states.
Kalu made the remarks while responding to questions in a video he shared on his official social media account, which 9News Nigeria saw. Asked about the APC presidential campaign rally in Kaduna State, the senator said he was impressed with the event but believed the party would benefit more if its leaders devoted greater attention to grassroots campaigning.
“The only aspect of the campaign I don’t agree with: all people should go back to their zones and go back to their states. We have work to do. Following the president around from one zone or one state to the other is not necessary,” he said.
His accompanying caption, titled “The APC Presidential Campaign Council and the Need for a Leaner Campaign Train,” reinforced the appeal, calling for a smaller entourage around the president.
“The President should be allowed to attend campaign rallies without an unnecessarily large number of people following him in the campaign train. Instead, they should return to their respective states and work at the grassroots level to mobilise support and deliver victory for the APC,” Kalu wrote.
The senator expressed confidence that Tinubu would secure another term and that the APC would retain a legislative majority, while arguing that the administration needed more time for its economic reforms to produce wider benefits.
“They should give us another four years to be able to manage the economy better,” he said.
Kalu praised Tinubu for taking decisions he described as difficult and courageous, saying the president had pursued reforms that previous leaders had been reluctant to undertake.
“People are afraid of making or taking decisions,” he said, describing Tinubu as “very courageous.”
However, his assessment also acknowledged the gap between improvements in economic indicators and the circumstances of ordinary Nigerians. He said growth needed to extend to manufacturing and become evident in the lives of people on the streets and in the middle class.
Kalu argued that the administration had performed well at the macroeconomic level, but said further work was needed to translate those gains into improved living conditions.
“Let people on the street see the growth, let people in the middle class see the growth, and the country will be balanced,” he said.
He also acknowledged the effect of insecurity on farming, noting that banditry continued to prevent people in some areas from accessing their farms.
On the administration’s reforms, Kalu appealed for patience, saying they were difficult to implement and needed time to yield the prosperity the government was pursuing.
“You know, reforms are not easy,” he said. “It’s difficult to do reforms.”
Returning to his central message, the senator urged those accompanying Tinubu on the campaign trail to take responsibility for building support for the party in their home states.
“I want people who are following him around in the campaign trail to go back to states. Let’s work for our party at the local level,” he said.
Kalu maintained that sustained local mobilisation would strengthen the APC’s chances, expressing confidence that the president would be re-elected.
