Senator Ali Ndume has urged President Bola Tinubu to hand over leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign structure ahead of the 2027 election.
The Borno South senator argues that the party—not the presidential candidate—should run the campaign machinery.
Ndume made the recommendation during an appearance on ARISE Television’s Prime Time, questioning the logic of Tinubu personally chairing the body campaigning for his re-election.
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“What is the party doing?”
According to Ndume, Tinubu should be presented to voters as the APC’s presidential candidate rather than simultaneously serving as the person directing the campaign operation.
His argument is essentially about separating the candidate from the political machinery promoting him.
“If I had the ear of Mr President, he does not need to be the Presidential Campaign Council chairman. What is the party doing?” Ndume said.
Tinubu recently constituted the APC Presidential Campaign Council and appointed himself chairman as preparations for the 2027 general election gather momentum.
Ndume believes the arrangement should instead give the party’s leadership a more prominent operational role.
Governors should drive the campaign
The senator proposed a structure in which APC governors lead the presidential campaign in their individual states, while a central coordinating team manages the nationwide effort.
Under his proposal:
- State governors would oversee the presidential campaign within their states.
- APC’s national leadership would provide broader political direction.
- A central coordinating team would synchronize campaign activities across the country.
- Tinubu would remain the candidate, rather than personally managing the campaign machinery.
Ndume’s approach would effectively turn the campaign into a coordinated party operation, with governors serving as the principal campaign leaders at the state level.
A wider question about Tinubu’s political team
The senator’s comments come as questions continue to emerge over how the APC intends to organise its 2027 campaign.
Ndume has recently expressed concerns about the quality of advice reaching the President and the effectiveness of the political team around him.
His latest intervention adds another dimension: whether the campaign would be stronger if the APC’s political structures assumed greater responsibility instead of placing so much of the machinery directly under the presidential candidate.
With the 2027 election approaching, the debate is therefore not simply about who chairs the campaign council. It is about how the APC intends to turn Tinubu’s incumbency into an effective, disciplined and nationwide re-election campaign.
