President Tinubu Commends Senator Yari's Leadership of the Campaign Council as DG Briefs Him on Progress

Senator Abdulaziz Abubakar Yari, Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, has briefed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the progress of the Council's work, in a meeting at the President's Lagos residence. The President, in turn, commended the Senator's efforts and the engagements the Council has undertaken under his leadership.

The Senator was accompanied by his son, Hon. Ahmad Abdulaziz Yari.

Reporting back to the principal

For the head of any campaign organisation, there are few meetings more important than the one in which you report directly to the candidate. The Lagos meeting was that kind of meeting.

Senator Yari took the President through what the Council has done since it began its national assignment and where things stand as preparations for the 2027 general elections move forward. He briefed the President on the outreach to traditional rulers, religious leaders and stakeholders, the state of the Council's structures and the work being done at its headquarters.

President Tinubu commended the Director-General's efforts and the engagements carried out so far. The commendation comes a few days after the President, in his birthday message to the Senator on 28 September, described him as a loyal party man, an experienced administrator and a grassroots mobiliser who is leading the charge to promote the administration's Renewed Hope achievements and reforms.

A month of consultations

The briefing had a great deal to cover. September was an unusually busy month for the Council, and much of that activity was led personally by Senator Yari.

In the middle of the month, he led a Council delegation to two of the country's most important traditional institutions in quick succession: the palace of the Oba of Lagos on 14 September, alongside Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and the palace of the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, on 15 September. The Council's engagement with traditional institutions continued in Maiduguri, where the Senator met the Shehu of Borno, and with a delegation to the Sultan of Sokoto.

There were also consultations with religious leaders, including the leadership of JIBWIS in Kaduna and Islamic scholars in Zamfara, and a day of meetings that took the Council across Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi and Plateau. In Abuja, the Director-General inspected the campaign office with Hon. James Abiodun Faleke and later reviewed operations and met staff at the Council's headquarters.

On 30 September, the Council's leadership met Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Council office to discuss engagements and preparations ahead of the presidential election.

All of this formed the substance of what the President heard in Lagos.

Why the engagements matter

It would be easy to see courtesy visits to palaces as ceremonial. Senator Yari does not see them that way, and neither, judging by his response, does the President.

Nigeria's traditional and religious institutions carry real weight with the people. They shape opinion, settle disputes and command respect that cuts across party lines. A campaign that engages them early and respectfully is building relationships it will need, not only during an election but in the governance that follows.

The Senator's own background helps here. He served as Governor of Zamfara State for two terms and chaired the Nigeria Governors' Forum between 2015 and 2019, a role that required him to work with leaders from every part of the country. In December 2025, he and his wife were honoured as Obaloyin and Yeye Obaloyin of Yorubaland in Oyo, a recognition that speaks to the trust he has built well beyond the North-West. He also holds the title of Marafan Sokoto.

That experience shows in the way the Council has approached its consultations: listening first, and treating each institution on its own terms.

The Vice President and the wider leadership

The briefing in Lagos followed closely on the Council's meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Council office on 30 September. That session, attended by members of the Council, focused on engagements and preparations ahead of the presidential election.

Taken together, the two meetings show a campaign leadership that keeps both principals on the ticket informed. The Vice President brings the administration's perspective into the Council's planning, and the President's guidance in Lagos sets the direction for the weeks ahead. For the Director-General, keeping that line of communication open is part of the job.

Structures and preparation

Beyond the visits, a campaign is built on structures that work. Part of the briefing dealt with the Council's internal organisation, including its headquarters operations and its coordination with state chapters.

The Director-General has spent time making sure the headquarters is ready for the scale of work ahead. A presidential campaign has to coordinate across 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, communicate a consistent message about the administration's record, and keep its teams motivated over a long period. The Council's leadership has been clear that preparation now will determine how effectively it can campaign when the formal season begins.

A family visit with a campaign message

Hon. Ahmad Yari's presence added another layer to the visit. Ahmad has become one of the more visible faces of youth mobilisation for the Tinubu–Shettima ticket in the North, most recently at the large youth rally in Gusau on 26 September and the launch of the Yari Sport Initiative in Kano the same weekend.

The President acknowledged Ahmad's youth work during the visit. For the Council, the contribution of young people is an essential part of the picture, and Ahmad's work complements the institutional engagement his father leads.

Looking ahead to 2027

The Lagos meeting closes one chapter and opens the next. With the President's commendation and guidance, the Council will continue its consultations across the country, strengthen its structures and keep communicating what the Renewed Hope administration has delivered, from infrastructure such as the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway to student loans, healthcare investment and economic reforms.

Senator Yari thanked the President for receiving him and for his confidence in the Council's leadership. He assured the President that the Council remains committed to the task it was given and to the re-election of the Tinubu–Shettima ticket in 2027.

Photographs from the visit are available in the gallery.