The campaign council chieftain urges Nigerians to support regional power rotation ahead of the 2027 elections, while calling on journalists to resist tribal politics and misinformation.

A chieftain of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Campaign Council, Mr, Otunba Segun Showunmi, has said Nigeria must institutionalize power rotation between regions to avoid perpetual political crisis, as the country prepares for the 2027 general elections.

Speaking in Kaduna during an engagement with journalists, Showunmi argued that zoning the presidency fairly between the North and South was critical for national stability and planning. He said the current administration deserves another term to “complete its reign” before the baton is passed to a younger generation.

 “When it is the north’s turn, they will bring us plenty. When it is the south’s turn, we choose one. If we don’t balance it, we will be in crisis forever,” he said. “Why don’t you let us use this one to complete their reign, and then begin to look for the next bright guys that will take the country?”

 Showunmi described President Tinubu as the “Namu Namu” of the moment  a Yoruba term for political godfather and mentor  who had consistently given platforms to younger leaders. He cited the President’s support for the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Governor Uba Sani, former Governor Nasir El-Rufai, and NSA Nuhu Ribadu.

 “He gave people platform when they had challenges. That is what leadership means,” he said. “Bola Tinubu is the Namu -Namu of now. Which other example is more than that?”

The campaign official also urged journalists to help shape public discourse ahead of 2027 by rejecting divisive and tribal politics. He said the media must act as “guardrails of democracy” against misinformation and AI-driven manipulation.

“Help us to stop them when they start to tell the lies that you know. If I’m telling a lie, stop me. If they are telling lies, stop them,” Showunmi told reporters. “The stability of a nation is in the hands of those of you who own bylines and have the microphone.”

He warned that social media and artificial intelligence were being used to instigate young people and provoke crises, especially in volatile states like Kaduna. “We cannot allow charlatans with phones to destroy the profession,” he added.

Showunmi praised Kaduna for hosting President Tinubu and delivering a peaceful, massive turnout, calling the state “the Lagos of the North.” He said the reception proved that Nigerians were still united despite political differences.

Turning to governance, he urged the press to focus more on development rather than politics of bitterness. He highlighted road projects by the Minister of Works, the student loan scheme, and increased allocations to states and local governments.

“Are we going to pretend we don’t know that governors and LGs are now getting more money? People are getting salaries as at when due,” he said. “That child of a nobody that goes to school today can become the big person tomorrow.”

On security and welfare, Showunmi said the situation was improving. He noted that kidnapped victims are now released within days and that government hospitals had reduced costs for dialysis and caesarean sections. “You cannot say it is nothing,” he told the journalists.

He also called for inclusive development and a return to Kaduna’s history of religious tolerance. “Is this not the Kaduna where Muslims and Christians used to celebrate together? Why are they trying to turn our country into something else?”