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President Bola Tinubu, members of the Federal Executive Council, 32 state governors and over 8,400 delegates will gather in Abuja for the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Convention to be held on Friday and Saturday.
The landmark event is expected to attract party leaders from across the board—national, zonal, state and regional levels—as the ruling party prepares to elect a number of new executives and chart its next course.
Details of the convention were revealed on Thursday by the Deputy Chairman of the Media Sub-Committee and Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, at a world press conference at the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja.
Among the top government officials and party supporters present at the briefing were the Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa; Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo; Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee, Pius Ayim; Special Advisor to the President for Media and Public Communications, Chief Sunday Dare; and Special Advisor for Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
Idris said the convention with the theme “Unity in Progress: Consolidating the New Hope Agenda” reflected the evolution and future aspirations of the APC.
He stated, “The convention hopes to bring together delegates from 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory for engagement on policy, leadership elections, and a formal transition to the new party executive, presenting a decision-making platform as well as a moment of reflection, consolidation, and direction-setting for the next phase of our journey.
“We are expecting a total of 8,453 delegates. These are the delegates we expect to come from the 36 states of the Federation to Abuja.
“The upcoming National Convention marks another milestone in our journey, reflecting the continuity of our values and the renewal of our leadership. It offers an opportunity to highlight the party’s achievements under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and to show how his guiding vision is being transformed into tangible results for the Nigerian people.”
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He continued, “The New Hope Agenda remains the main agenda. It guides policy direction, national development and engagement with the aspirations of the Nigerian people. Therefore, this convention is also an opportunity to deepen this agenda in our leadership and institutional structures, to ensure that the goals of the party and government remain aligned.”
The minister added that the APC remains an inclusive platform that accommodates diverse views while maintaining unity, stressing that such diversity strengthens the party’s development focus.
He further assured that preparations for the convention have been fully completed.
“Therefore, all arrangements have been finalized for a smooth, transparent and credible convention at the iconic Eagle Square in Abuja, as stated in the official notification we provided.
”All committees formed by the party have completed their tasks and operational systems to ensure smooth coordination, efficiency and order. Every detail has been taken care of so that the service can proceed without avoidable disruption.”
Also speaking, APC National Convention Center Coordinating Committee Chairman and former Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, stressed that the party has stuck to its zoning formula and is unaware of any legal challenges threatening the exercise.
Masari noted that the 25 subcommittees formed for the convention expressed satisfaction with the level of preparation.
“We assure Nigerians and even those outside Nigeria that the APC is well prepared for the 2026 convention, which will begin early tomorrow morning (today).”
Responding to concerns over possible litigation related to zoning regulations, Masari emphasized that his party remains guided by existing principles, including federal character.
“As I said, and I will repeat, APC is the responsible party in Nigeria. In keeping with the federal character, all offices are zoned. If you come to buy forms, and you buy forms, buy forms categorized according to your zone only.
”When there’s zoning in A, and you’re in Z, and you want to buy a form in A, we suspect you’re there just to create confusion. So, who likes confusion? Like our country, the party structure is zonal based. NWC members are distributed by zone.”
“So, if you run for office that is not in your zone, how can you say you are democratic? We suspect that people like this are interested, perhaps as agents, to come and destroy our party, which we will not agree with. And I know Nigerians will not agree.
“We don’t know anyone has come to court. We haven’t been served. I’m sure you know we are the responsible party. If we are served, we will pay attention. Can you pay for something you don’t have? You can only keep something you have,” he stressed.
