Governors from the South-East have openly asked Igbo voters to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, in one of the clearest regional endorsements yet ahead of the 2027 general election. The call came on Saturday, October 31, at the All Progressives Congress (APC) Women Mega Rally and Empowerment Programme for the South-East, held at Okpara Square in Enugu.
According to reports by Premium Times (citing the News Agency of Nigeria), Vanguard, ThisDay and Tribune, Enugu Governor Peter Mbah, Imo Governor Hope Uzodimma and Ebonyi Governor Francis Nwifuru spoke at the event, while Anambra Governor Charles Soludo was represented by his deputy, Gilbert Ibezim. Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, also addressed the crowd.
Mbah: Consolidate Tinubu’s reforms
Governor Mbah, the host, urged residents of the zone to back the President so that his economic reforms could be consolidated. He linked some of his state’s projects, including new primary healthcare centres, to the federal reforms.
He asked women in particular to vote for Tinubu and APC candidates when Nigerians go to the polls, which reports put at January 16, 2027 for the first round of elections. Defending the push for continuity, Mbah said: “A good sailor does not abandon his ship mid-sea.”
Mbah described South-Easterners as strategic people whose businesses and relationships stretch far beyond the zone, and encouraged them to take an active part in national politics. He also launched an empowerment programme targeting 5,000 women across the region, saying more than 2,000 women in Enugu had already benefited within 48 hours. Beneficiaries reportedly received cash, help with hospital bills and tools to earn an income.
Uzodimma cites roads and “new era of inclusion”
Imo Governor Hope Uzodimma called the rally historic and thanked First Lady Oluremi Tinubu for her women’s empowerment work in the region. He argued that the Igbo had been marginalised for more than six decades but were now seeing what he called a new era of political inclusion.
Uzodimma pointed to road projects linking Okigwe, Umuahia and Orlu to Owerri, and Owerri to Port Harcourt, as well as reforms in electricity, health and education. He said improved state finances had allowed Imo to pay salaries and pensions regularly, including a 13th-month salary. These claims were made by the governor and were not independently verified in the reports.
Nwifuru denies coalition talk; Soludo’s deputy joins call
Ebonyi Governor Francis Nwifuru praised the APC’s skills acquisition and empowerment schemes and described the party as the only one with a clear manifesto. He also dismissed suggestions that he was linked to any opposition coalition, insisting his loyalty remained with the APC, according to Vanguard.
Speaking for Governor Soludo, whose party is APGA, Deputy Governor Gilbert Ibezim said the South-East had a duty to support Tinubu’s re-election in recognition of the administration’s achievements and stood to gain from continued cooperation with the federal government.
Kalu: no Igbo president in 60 years
Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu told the gathering that no Igbo person had been president in the past 60 years and urged the region to strengthen its political alliances. He recalled that Tinubu, as Lagos governor, kept good relations with the Igbo community and included Igbo people in his cabinet. Kalu also credited the administration with setting up the South East Development Commission (SEDC).
Why it matters and what comes next
The South-East has historically been one of the weakest zones for the APC in presidential elections. In 2023, Labour Party candidate Peter Obi won the region by a wide margin. Obi, now the presidential candidate of the NDC, was in Imo State on Saturday for a town hall meeting where, according to Naija News, he said “everything under Tinubu is collapsing” and promised a state of emergency on insecurity if elected.
The opposition ADC, whose candidate is Atiku Abubakar, is also courting voters in the region, while the 2027 polls are now less than 80 days away. The Enugu rally signals that the APC intends to lean heavily on sitting governors and women’s networks to make inroads in the zone. Reports of the event did not include a response from opposition parties.
Campaigns are expected to intensify across the South-East in the coming weeks, with INEC due to publish the final voters’ register on December 15.
Sources: Premium Times/NAN, Vanguard, ThisDay, Tribune, Naija News.