…say APC offers Nigerians continuity and consolidation
…accuses opposition of condemning reforms without presenting credible alternatives 
By Gloria Ikibah
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, has declared that members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council will campaign for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027 from constituency to constituency and ward to ward.
Abbas also dismissed opposition parties as no better alternative to the current administration, accusing their leaders of condemning the Federal Government’s reforms without offering credible solutions to the country’s challenges.
The Speaker made the remarks on Wednesday at the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He described members of the council as “Ambassadors of Truth” and “Ambassadors of the Renewed Hope Agenda”, urging them to defend the administration’s record with facts rather than insults or emotional arguments.
He said: “An ambassador does not invent evidence. An ambassador masters it. An ambassador does not insult the public. An ambassador respects its intelligence. An ambassador does not avoid difficult questions. An ambassador answers them.
“Go to every state with facts. Go to every constituency with facts. Go to every ward with facts. Tell Nigerians what changed, why it changed, what has been achieved, and what remains to be done.
“We should expect propaganda and provocation. We should expect attempts to exploit region, religion, and ethnicity. We must rise above them. When opponents raise their voices, we must raise the quality of our argument. When they manufacture suspicion, we must present evidence.
“When they insult, we must inform. When they divide, we must unite. Facts delivered with discipline are stronger than insults delivered in anger.”
Abbas said the APC must focus its campaign on explaining the policies and achievements of the Tinubu administration, while acknowledging the challenges Nigerians have faced during the reform process.
He also assured the President that the House will continue to support the administration through legislation and oversight.
“The House will remain a strong legislative partner in advancing security, productivity, and shared prosperity.
“We will complete priority legislation. We will intensify oversight. We will defend institutional stability,” he said.
The Speaker said APC lawmakers will take the administration’s record to their constituencies and engage voters directly ahead of the elections.
“Our members will also take this record home. Every constituency must become a centre of lawful mobilisation and honest civic engagement. We will campaign constituency by constituency. Ward by ward. Street by street. Door to door”, headded.
‘Second term must consolidate stability’
Abbas argued that Tinubu’s first term had laid the foundation for economic and institutional reforms, insisting that a second term will be needed to consolidate the gains and translate increased public revenue into tangible benefits for Nigerians.
He said the administration’s next phase should focus on ensuring that the sacrifices associated with its reforms produce meaningful improvements in people’s lives.
“The first term laid the foundation. The second term must complete the structure. The first term expanded public revenue. The second term must turn revenue into public value.
“Nigeria has paid the price of reform. Nigeria must now receive the dividend of consolidation. We cannot fix the foundation and then hand the building to those who denied anything was wrong in the first place.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had the courage to begin. He has shown the discipline to stay the course. We must now give him the mandate to complete the work,” he said.
He charged members of the campaign council to explain why continuity under Tinubu will serve the country better than a change of government.
“Explain, with courage and clarity, why continuity under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu serves Nigeria better than reversalAbbas said.
He added that the 2027 election presented a choice “between consolidation and confusion; between steady progress and dangerous retreat; between completing a difficult national repair and abandoning it halfway.”
Abbas challenges opposition to present alternatives
The Speaker also criticised opposition politicians, describing them as familiar political figures who had changed platforms without presenting new ideas or a credible programme for governing Nigeria.
He argued that the opposition had focused on criticising the administration rather than explaining how it will address national challenges if elected.
“The opposition will try to reduce this election to anger. We must elevate it to an argument. They condemn reform but offer no credible replacement. They promise reversal without calculating its cost. They assemble familiar political actors under new arrangements and call it a new beginning.
“But a rearrangement of ambition is not a programme of government. Their clearest proposal is to remove President Tinubu. But what better programme do they offer? How will they fund education? How will they sustain student loans? How will they protect the minimum wage? How will they finance roads, power, and healthcare? How will they protect rising revenues if they return to the policies that drained them in the first place?”, he stated.
Abbas said the APC should be prepared to defend its policies through evidence-based arguments and respond to criticism with clear explanations of its plans and achievements.
He acknowledged the constitutional right of opposition parties to challenge the government but insisted that they must demonstrate their readiness to govern.
“Opposition is a constitutional right. But a credible alternative government requires more than anger. It requires clear plans, credible facts, and honest answers. They offer a coalition of grievances. We offer a government with a programme”, he noted.
The Speaker maintained that the APC campaign should avoid divisive rhetoric and focus instead on the administration’s policies, its record and its plans for the country.
President Tinubu reportedly described Abbas’s address as “intellectual”, as the Speaker urged party members to approach the 2027 campaign with discipline, facts and clear arguments in defence of the administration.
