Former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, has urged members of the Yoruba community in Kano State to mobilise at least two million votes for President Bola Tinubu and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress in the 2027 general elections.
Bello said the community needed to strengthen its political mobilisation and translate its population and influence into electoral support for the ruling party.
He made the appeal on Saturday while speaking at the Yoruba Political Mobilisation and Empowerment Programme in Kano, where he also commended the community for its contributions to the state’s social and economic development.
The former governor recalled that Yoruba voters in Kano reportedly delivered nearly 500,000 votes for Tinubu during the 2023 presidential election, describing the performance as insufficient.
“In the last presidential election, our voting population in Kano delivered nearly 500,000 votes for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. That performance was not satisfactory, and we must do better this time,” he said.
Bello urged the community to intensify its grassroots engagement across different neighbourhoods, stressing that its political responsibility should extend beyond the presidential election to other APC candidates contesting legislative positions.
“I am convinced that the votes he mobilises for Mr President should not be less than two million, if not more. And this should not be limited to the presidential election. We must also work for all APC candidates, from the President to the Senate, House of Representatives and State House of Assembly,” he said.
He argued that although the Yoruba and other minority communities in Kano might have smaller populations than the state’s indigenous population, they should not underestimate their political strength.
According to him, effective organisation and mobilisation would enable the communities to make their votes count in the forthcoming elections.
Bello also highlighted the relationship between Kano and its Yoruba residents, noting that the state had maintained a diverse population and harmonious relationships among different ethnic groups.
He commended the organisers of the programme and acknowledged traditional institutions and representatives of various ethnic communities who attended the gathering.
The former governor said the event was designed to empower participants through financial assistance, materials, political support and other interventions worth hundreds of millions of naira.
He particularly praised the community’s leadership, although the name of the individual he acknowledged was unclear in the recording of his remarks.
Bello also used the occasion to defend Tinubu’s infrastructure projects, citing the ongoing rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Kano-Abuja Federal Highway as an example of the administration’s commitment to development.
He disclosed that he had sent someone to Kano two days earlier to assess the progress of the road project.
“About two days ago, I sent someone to Kano to practically verify the progress of the Kano-Abuja Federal Highway. You can now travel from Kano to Abuja without virtually needing to switch on your vehicle’s headlights during the day because of the quality of the road,” he said.
He further claimed that the volume of road construction in Northern Nigeria was higher than that recorded in the southern part of the country, adding that the projects were evidence of the President’s performance.
Bello also appealed for political stability, arguing that Tinubu should be allowed to complete his tenure before any consideration of power returning to the North.
He questioned calls for an early transfer of power to the region, noting that former President Muhammadu Buhari, who came from the North, had completed eight years in office before Tinubu assumed the presidency.
“After eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari, who is from the North, President Tinubu has not even completed his first four-year term. Must he complete his eight years before power returns to the North?” he asked.
He said he would continue to pray for Tinubu’s good health and long life to enable him to provide leadership for the country beyond 2031.
Bello also commended the Kano State Government, saying he noticed changes in the state and at the Government House during his visit.
West Trybe reports that Bello’s remarks place ethnic-community mobilisation and the distribution of votes across elective positions at the centre of the APC’s political engagement in Kano ahead of the 2027 elections.
