Northern political heavyweights, including former governors, serving and former senators and other influential stakeholders, have concluded plans to mobilise support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

The group, under the banner of Arewa for Asiwaju (A4A), is being structured as a northern political mobilisation platform with chapters across the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

A formal unveiling of the group is expected in Abuja in the coming days, followed by zonal and state inaugurations.

The movement’s Board of Trustees will be chaired by former Kano State governor and former Minister of Education, Senator Ibrahim Shekarau.

Former Yobe State governor and Minister of Police Affairs, Senator Ibrahim Geidam, and former Plateau State governor, Senator Simon Bako Lalong, will serve as deputy chairmen of the board.

Other members of the proposed 14-member board include former governors, serving and former senators and other prominent political figures, among them Ibrahim Kabir Masari, Joshua Dariye, Buba Marwa, Aliyu Wamakko, Isa Yuguda, Jolly Nyame, Atiku Bagudu, Yahaya Bello, Aishatu Dukku, Binta Ibrahim and Mohammed Badaru Abubakar.

Badaru, a former governor of Jigawa State and current Minister of Defence, is also designated as Secretary of the Board and Director-General of the movement’s National Directorate.

He is expected to coordinate the group’s operations across the 19 northern states and the FCT, while overseeing its various directorates and campaign structures.

The proposed national structure also includes former Katsina State governor Ibrahim Shema as Deputy National Coordinator for the North-West, Yahaya Bello for the North-Central and Abdulrazaq Namdas for the North-East.

The movement has also created directorates for finance and resource mobilisation, operations and logistics, communications and media strategy, mobilisation, youth affairs, business and professionals, religious communities, civil society, parliamentary mobilisation, research and strategy, ICT, traditional institutions, women, academia, students and the creative and entertainment industry.

Among those listed to lead the various directorates are Bala Wunti, Tijjani Yahaya Kaura, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, Ismail Ahmed, Abba Aliyu, Sani Musa, Abdullahi Mukhtar Mohammad, Jalal Arabi, Bashir Yuguda, Suleiman Abdulrahman Kawu Sumaila, Bashir Dabo, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, Ali Nuhu and Iman Suleiman.

At the grassroots level, the group said state coordinators had been nominated for the 19 northern states and the FCT, with former and serving political office holders among those designated to lead the structures.

The A4A said its elaborate structure was designed to provide a coordinated northern mobilisation machinery for Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

The announcement comes amid intensifying political realignments ahead of the 2027 elections, with the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) and opposition parties stepping up efforts to consolidate support across the country.

The group said its formal unveiling would take place in Abuja shortly, after which its zonal and state structures would be inaugurated.