The Director General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, has urged Northerners to support the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the interest of national integration and unity.

Yari, who insisted that the North must respect the principle of rotational presidency between the two prominent regions, stressed that Nigeria belongs to all citizens irrespective of their ethnic backgrounds.

Yari made the submission on Saturday while speaking to journalists at the Government House, Kano. He added that Northerners should recognise that Nigeria is an amalgamation of different regions, while political elites should reflect the need for a peaceful power shift to the South.

Responding to how he would convince electorates in the North to vote for Tinubu’s re-election, the former Zamfara State governor said he would appeal to Northerners to respect the rights of other regions.

Yari, who currently represents Zamfara North West Senatorial District in the National Assembly, cautioned against the belief that political power should be retained in one region simply because of its numerical strength.

He argued that the North had controlled the central government for about 47 years in the last 66 years of independence, adding that allowing power to remain in the South for another four years would help consolidate national cohesion.

Senator Yari, while acknowledging that the Tinubu administration was not perfect, urged Nigerians to understand that the challenges facing the present government were accumulated problems.

He maintained that challenges such as inflation, insecurity and economic difficulties were not peculiar to Nigeria, insisting that the United States of America also had its fair share of such challenges.

“Problems have never been completely solved by any government, including the United States. They have their own inflation, high prices and insecurity. And today, if Nigeria is a better country, which I believe it is, the contributions of Northerners are part of it. If there are things that are not working, Northerners have also been part of the leadership responsible for them,” Yari added.

While canvassing for Northern votes for Tinubu, Yari urged Nigerians to examine economic indicators, including foreign reserves and inflation, when assessing the performance of the present administration, rather than relying solely on political narratives.

According to him, the administration has made efforts to address the country’s economic challenges and strengthen its foreign reserves, appealing to citizens to compare relevant economic indicators from 2023 with current figures.

He said Nigerians should work collectively for peace and development, adding that both the Federal and state governments were making efforts to address the challenges confronting the country.