The ruling All Progressives Congress on Monday received former candidates of the African Democratic Congress who withdrew from various State House of Assembly races in the North and defected to the ruling party.
APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, who received the defectors, warned that any attempt to reintroduce fuel subsidy would cripple the region and halt ongoing road, gas and fertiliser projects.
The delegation was led by Princess Aslam Aliyu, popularly known as Gimbiyar Kauran Namoda. Mohammed Hassan, an ADC candidate from Zamfara State, delivered the delegation’s remarks.
Hassan said the defectors were joining the APC for a bigger purpose.
“We are not here merely to change the political platform, but to begin a new chapter of service and make a great contribution to our people by supporting Baba Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in 2027. We have come to work; we have come to contribute,” he said.
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Yilwatda responded by questioning the opposition’s promise to restore the fuel subsidy. “The Hausa radio stations tell us that they will return the subsidy. I keep asking: How are they going to return the subsidy? Do you mean they will stop all these road constructions because they want to return the subsidy? Because there will be no money for these constructions; all these roads again.
“For example, they will tell you on Hausa radio programmes that Mr President does not like the northern part of Nigeria. Let us ask: Where are the northern Nigerians? Where are you? We are part of the North.They will tell you that he is constructing roads in the South and is not doing anything in the North. The road from Abuja to Kano is 400 kilometres. The road from Kano to Maiduguri is 500 kilometres. The two roads alone are 900, almost 1,000 kilometres.”
Yilwatda said several major road projects were ongoing across Northern Nigeria, citing the Abuja-Kano and Kano-Maiduguri corridors, as well as roads linking Jos to Akwanga, Sokoto to Kebbi, Kano to Daura and Zaria to Danja.
He also listed projects in Lokoja, Benue, Mokwa, Niger and Zamfara, arguing that the scale of ongoing construction contradicted claims that the Federal Government was neglecting the North.
The APC chairman also questioned how the opposition would fund its promise to restore fuel subsidy, asking whether the policy would lead to the suspension of ongoing road projects due to lack of funds.
He continued, “The gas they are bringing to the North will come with fertiliser, and we in the North need that fertiliser to farm. Do you mean they should stop it? The CNG will come with the gas and make transportation easier for vulnerable people. Should we stop it?
“The beneficiaries of the student loan, most of them are from the North. We have more and more of them in this part of the country. Should we stop it? Should most of our people who cannot afford school fees go back to being wheelbarrow pushers in the villages? The questions are too many. We cannot answer them all here.
“I can also assure you that among the about 30 states that could not pay salaries in Nigeria, all the states in the North could not pay salaries as of 2023, when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took over. So, should we say our states should go back again to where they could not pay salaries and gratuities, thereby increasing poverty in the North? These were some of the factors that made poverty prevalent in the North and other parts of Nigeria as well.”
Yilwatda assured the defectors of full integration into the APC, urging them to return to their respective states and local governments to mobilise support for the party ahead of the 2027 elections.
He advised them to focus on strengthening their polling units, stressing that elections are ultimately decided at the polling-unit level.
Tinubu announced the removal of fuel subsidy during his inauguration on May 29, 2023, implementing one of his major campaign promises.
The policy triggered increases in the cost of goods and services, although the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government has maintained that the decision has brought significant economic gains.
However, ahead of the 2027 election, the Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who had also campaigned in 2023 on removing the subsidy, has pledged to restore it if elected, saying the move would cushion the effects of its removal on Nigerians.
