Kalu, Keyamo, Lalong Omitted As Tinubu ‘Withdraws’ APC Campaign Council List

President Bola Tinubu has reportedly ordered the dissolution and reconstitution of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council for the 2027 general elections.

This is understood to have followed controversy that has greeted the initial roaster released by the Presidency on Saturday.

TheWill quoted Tinubu as saying the directive followed concerns from senior members of the ruling party that the composition failed to adequately accommodate key stakeholders and did not sufficiently reflect the hierarchy, geographical spread and political structure of the party.

Sources said the President ordered the Presidency and the leadership of the National Assembly and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC to withdraw and review the initial composition and address the identified gaps before any new list is released.

Sources said Tinubu was embarrassed by the lapses uncovered in the list and was particularly concerned about the need for a campaign structure capable of bringing together the party’s major stakeholders and political actors ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

“The President was surprised and shocked that limited input from key and experienced people of the party was taken in the final composition of the campaign council,” a source said.

The initial campaign list, which will be headed by former Zamfara State Governor, Senator Abdul’aziz Yari as Director-General, sparked concerns within the party about the absence of several prominent APC members who are regarded as important political stakeholders in their respective states and regions.

One of the major issues raised was the omission of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu.

In the first arrangement, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, was appointed a Deputy Director-General for the Southern campaign, alongside Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas and Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, while Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele and Deputy Senate President, Jibril Barau were given coordinating roles.

Stakeholders in the APC argued that the designation seemed to place the Senate President in a campaign structure with or below other officials of the National Assembly who normally rank differently in the constitutional hierarchy.

The sources told the publication that the new arrangement would have to rectify the perceived imbalance and ensure that the leadership of the National Assembly is properly integrated into the campaign hierarchy.

Also missing from the initial list is the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo (SAN) who was a prominent spokesman and Director of Public Affairs in the APCs 2023 presidential campaign.

The controversy also bolsters a report by TheWill previously published on prominent APC members with direct presidential campaign management experience that was not part of the initial roaster.

They are former Governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong, who was Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council for the 2023 election; Festus Keyamo, senior advocate and former prosecutor with the EFCC, who was one of the most visible persons who spoke for the campaign; and National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, who was Director of Stakeholders Relations in the 2023 structure.

The initial council did not include former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, who was the National Youth Coordinator during the 2023 campaign.

Other notable absentees were former Ogun State Governors, Gbenga Daniel and Ibikunle Amosun and former Edo State governorship candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu.

The exclusion of the governor of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, has also become a major concern. Okpebholo has emerged as a leading political voice in the APC’s mobilization for the re-election of Tinubu and is considered a key part of the party’s growing political clout in the South-South.

However, the decision to review the campaign list has not revealed any indication of Tinubu withdrawing the appointment of Yari as Director-General.