Supporters of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday dismissed renewed criticism of the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket by former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, insisting the issue had been settled by Nigerians in the 2023 presidential election and would not influence the 2027 polls.

The position was canvassed at a one-day conference in Abuja on the economic, structural and infrastructural development of the North Central under the Tinubu administration.

Speaking at the event, Director General of the Tinubu Support Groups (TSG), Dr. Umar Tanko Yakasai, said Nigerians had already rejected arguments against the Muslim-Muslim ticket by electing Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima in 2023.

According to him, the North Central, which has a sizeable Christian population, has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of the current administration through strategic appointments and infrastructure projects, demonstrating that President Tinubu governs without religious or ethnic bias.

“In the 2023 general election, many people thought the Muslim-Muslim ticket would stop Tinubu. He won,” Yakasai said.

“Today, the North Central has become one of the major beneficiaries of President Bola Tinubu’s administration. INEC is headed by someone from the North Central, the APC National Chairman is from the North Central, key security institutions are headed by people from the North Central, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation is also from the zone.

“You cannot talk about religion without talking about the North Central because they constitute a significant proportion of Christians in Northern Nigeria. They have moved from marginalisation to integration and from exclusion to inclusion.”

Taking a swipe at Kwankwaso, Yakasai argued that the former Kano governor should know that Tinubu’s appointments and policies have reflected national inclusion rather than religious considerations.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has proven that he is President for all Nigerians irrespective of tribe or religion. If he were President only for Muslims, Kwankwaso himself would not have accepted to serve as running mate to a Christian presidential candidate,” he said.

Yakasai also rejected allegations that the administration favours the South West in federal appointments citing the recent appointment of Dr. Lilian Ene Ogbole as Commissioner in the National Wages Commission as well as the large number of federal appointees from Kano State as evidence that appointments have been spread across regions and religious divides.

“The President has spread his appointments across all tribes, all regions and all religions. It is the opposition that wants to shift attention from the successes of this administration to issues that have already been settled by Nigerians,” he added.

Also speaking, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, represented by Prof. Babatunde Bolaji Benard, described Tinubu as a visionary leader whose reforms were gradually placing Nigeria on the path of recovery.

Bernard recalled that while serving in Geneva years ago, he deliberately stopped at Oshodi during a visit to Nigeria, placed his shoes on the ground and prayed for Tinubu because he believed he possessed the leadership qualities to transform the country.

According to him, although the administration’s reforms were difficult, they would ultimately deliver long-term prosperity.

He likened the process to cooking beans, saying worthwhile outcomes often require patience. “The President is a trailblazer. He is taking decisions that may not produce instant results, but they are the kind of reforms that will secure Nigeria’s future,” he said.

Benard identified the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) as one of the administration’s landmark achievements, noting that while children of political leaders in previous administrations accessed student loans abroad, ordinary Nigerian students can now benefit from similar opportunities at home.

He also commended the administration’s infrastructure drive, saying projects such as the Calabar-Abuja highway corridor and the Sokoto-Badagry Super Highway would transform the country’s economy.
Referring to the Calabar-Abuja corridor, he said the project had been conceived as far back as 1958 but had remained unrealised until the current administration.

“How do you develop a country without critical infrastructure? What President Tinubu is doing today is laying the foundation for economic growth,” he said.

He added that the Sokoto-Badagry Super Highway, with its proposed 32 dams, would boost irrigation, agriculture, water supply and commercial activities across the country.

“They are not just roads; they are economic assets that will transform communities and create wealth,” he added.

Benard urged Nigerians to support leaders focused on long-term development rather than short-term political gains. “”We should leave those who give us peanuts and keep us in poverty. We should support the man who is digging up the ground and creating the conditions for Nigeria to blossom,” he said.

Earlier, convener of the conference, Dr. Lilian Ene Ogbole, declared that the North Central would play a decisive role in President Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

She said the administration’s investments in roads, agriculture, education, security and other critical sectors had changed the region’s perception of the Federal Government after years of neglect.

Ogbole urged Nigerians to give Tinubu what she described as “massive and unconditional support” to enable him consolidate ongoing reforms, arguing that countries such as China and the Asian Tigers achieved rapid development through policy continuity and sustained leadership.

She also said the North Central had remained a decisive voting bloc in every presidential election since 1999 and would again influence the outcome of the 2027 poll.

According to her, more than 15 major road projects are either under construction or undergoing rehabilitation within and across the North Central, including the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Expressway, Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Maiduguri Highway, Calabar-Ebonyi-Benue-Kogi-Nasarawa-Abuja Super Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Super Highway, Suleja-Minna Dual Carriageway, Keffi-Nasarawa-Abaji Road, Bida-Lambata Road, Lokoja-Okene Dualisation and Makurdi-Aliade-Otukpo Road.

She also highlighted federal interventions in agriculture, education and security, saying improved access to financing, irrigation projects, student loans and ongoing security operations had strengthened livelihoods and encouraged farmers to return to their farms.

While acknowledging that economic reforms had imposed short-term hardship on Nigerians, Ogbole maintained that the policies were laying the foundation for sustainable economic growth through increased investment, improved revenue generation and expanded business opportunities.

She pledged that the group would mobilise support across Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger and Plateau states, as well as the Federal Capital Territory, ahead of the 2027 general election.

“We are pledging to mobilise massively across the North Central to support the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We will work within the confines of the law to ensure that his victory is secured because the President has demonstrated commitment to the development of our region and Nigeria as a whole,” she said.