As political alignments gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general election, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. George Agbakahi, has expressed confidence that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains the candidate to beat, insisting the President’s performance in office will define the race.
Speaking in an interview with ARISE News on Wednesday, Agbakahi said the President’s achievements provide a strong foundation for a second-term bid. “The President is going to run on his record. He has a track record of accomplishment,” he stated.
According to him, when Tinubu assumed office, Nigeria’s economy was in turmoil, weighed down by what he described as an artificial exchange rate regime and a corruption-ridden fuel subsidy system. He argued that the President instituted “a paradigm shift” by removing subsidy and reforming foreign exchange policies.
Agbakahi cited improvements in key economic indicators, including foreign reserves. “When President Tinubu came on board, our foreign reserve was about 34 billion. As we speak today, it’s 49 billion. So a lot is happening,” he said.
On the cost of living, he acknowledged ongoing hardship but maintained that gradual improvements are visible. “It was hard initially. It is still hard,” he admitted, adding that food prices are beginning to moderate.
He also pointed to increased federal allocations to states, arguing that higher disbursements from FAAC have enabled governors to undertake infrastructure projects across the country.
Addressing the controversy over the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, Agbakahi defended the National Assembly’s decision to retain manual backup transmission of results in cases of technological failure.
“You know very well that we are running a democracy, a three-tier system of government. The National Assembly is independent of the executive,” he said.
He maintained that technological glitches and infrastructure challenges justify a manual fallback option. “If there is a computer glitch… that particular community, their vote is not going either to the local government or to the national. That is the reality,” he explained.
Agbakahi further emphasized the continued relevance of Form EC8A in Nigeria’s electoral framework, describing it as “the nucleus of our electoral system.”
With debates intensifying over reforms and transparency, the APC chieftain insisted that the President’s record will ultimately shape the 2027 contest. “President Tinubu is going to run on his record,” he reiterated.
Triumph Ojo
