Vice President Kashim Shettima has declared that the North will return President Bola Tinubu to office in 2027. 

He cautioned, however, that growing northern support must be earned through results and honest engagement with citizens.

Shettima spoke on Saturday in Abuja while unveiling the head office of the Arewa for Asiwaju (A4A) campaign and formally inaugurating the northern think tank’s campaign structure. He said the region had spoken with a resounding voice and unmistakable conviction, from Adamawa to Zamfara and from Borno to Niger.

He added that such confidence places an obligation on every officeholder and must never be taken for granted. He insisted the North had nothing to fear in a second Tinubu term, but said the administration’s case for a renewed mandate must rest on its record, transparency and measurable results.

The vice president also acknowledged the pain of recent economic reforms. He said Nigerians had endured difficult adjustments and that supporters must not pretend otherwise or lean on political slogans.

He said the concerns of traders facing higher costs, graduates searching for jobs and families struggling with daily expenses must stay central to government decisions. He also defended the place of critics in public life, saying there is no democracy without them.

At the same event, the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nentawe Yilwatda, predicted that the North would deliver more than 70 per cent of its votes to Tinubu. He cited road projects across the region, the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline, irrigation dams, railways, healthcare initiatives and the Nigerian Education Loan Fund.

He also pointed to the appointment of northerners to key positions as reasons for northern voters to back the president. He moved a motion for the region to support the Tinubu-Shettima ticket.

Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin said the region needed a strong, trusted platform to mobilise support. Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, urged northerners to decide on the basis of evidence rather than sentiment. Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, speaking for northern governors, said the region’s backing would rest on fairness, equity and unity.

The group’s Director-General, former Jigawa governor Abubakar Badaru, said the group was formed out of conviction that Tinubu and his deputy had performed well.

The opposition has dismissed such projections. The campaign council of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) presidential candidate, says he will defeat Tinubu in the 12 states the president has identified for campaign visits, and in other parts of the country.