President Bola Tinubu on Thursday welcomed a delegation of political leaders and top government officials from Nigeria’s Northeast at the State House in Abuja.
The delegation, led by Borno State Governor and Chairman of the Northeast Governors’ Forum, Prof. Babagana Zulum, paid what was widely seen as a courtesy and appreciation visit.
While the Presidency did not officially reveal the purpose of the meeting, sources familiar with the visit said the delegation came to express gratitude to President Tinubu for retaining Vice President Kashim Shettima as the All Progressives Congress (APC) vice-presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Among those at the meeting were former Borno State Governor and APC stalwart, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff; Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari; former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and Special Adviser to the President on General Duties in the Office of the Vice President, Aliyu Moddibo Umar; Deputy Chief of Staff to the President in the Office of the Vice President, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia; and the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.
The visit came exactly one week after President Tinubu formally presented Shettima with his APC vice-presidential candidacy certificate at the Presidential Villa, reaffirming the party’s presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 polls.
During an earlier visit to the President, Governor Zulum had informed journalists that the North-East governors intended to lead a broader regional delegation to express appreciation to Tinubu for retaining Shettima on the APC ticket.
“By next week we shall be preparing to come and see him,” Zulum had said after seeking the President’s consent for the visit.
Shettima, a former two-term governor of Borno State, is the first politician from the Northeast geopolitical zone to serve as Nigeria’s Vice President.
The Northeast, comprising Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe states, remains one of the APC’s strongest political bases.
