Uba Sani urges opposition parties to engage voters directly, criticising their reliance on social media ahead of the 2027 general elections

Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has urged opposition parties to intensify grassroots mobilisation and engage voters directly rather than focus on the activities of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on social media ahead of the 2027 general elections.

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Sani made the call during an interview with TVC on Sunday night, arguing that political parties seeking electoral victory must take their campaigns to communities and interact with the electorate.

“If you are campaigning to win elections, you have to go out and meet with the people,” the governor said.

He singled out the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), claiming that both parties had not demonstrated the level of grassroots engagement he expected.

“The only party that I see reaching out through town hall meetings, other than our party, is probably APM. I’m surprised. I have seen them going round. But you cannot say the same with ADC and NDC,” he said.

Sani questioned whether opposition parties were reaching ordinary Nigerians, particularly disadvantaged communities, and whether they had developed clear campaign strategies.

“Are they reaching out to the public, particularly the downtrodden? The answer is no. Have they come out with any strategy on their campaign? The answer is no,” he said.

“You can’t run a campaign by reacting to what another party is doing. Go and do your own campaign,” he added.

The governor also accused opposition parties of relying on digital tactics, including artificial intelligence and manipulated images, to criticise the APC rather than concentrating on direct voter engagement.

He expressed confidence in the ruling party’s grassroots strategy, insisting that the APC was actively engaging citizens and communicating its policies.

“We are the only party that is reaching out, talking to the people. So, whether the opposition decides to come together or not, it’s not our business,” Sani said.

On the APC’s electoral prospects in the North, the governor recalled that the party’s National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, had expressed confidence that the region would deliver 70 per cent of its votes to President Bola Tinubu.

Sani said Kaduna State would aim for an even stronger performance, declaring that the APC would regard it as a failure if any presidential candidate secured as much as 25 per cent of the votes in the state.

“In Kaduna State, allowing any candidate to even get 25% of the votes is a failure on our side,” he said.

The governor attributed his confidence to what he described as federal government interventions and development projects undertaken in Kaduna State during Tinubu’s administration.

He commended the President for handing over Ahmadu Bello Stadium to the state government, which he said would reconstruct the facility to meet FIFA standards, with a seating capacity of 33,000.

Sani also highlighted the reconstruction of the 123-kilometre Kaduna-Birnin Gwari Road, stating that ₦178 billion had been released for the project, which he said had remained abandoned for more than 40 years.

He further cited the ongoing reconstruction of the Zaria-Soba-Kambuwa Road and the proposed Kaduna metropolitan light rail project as examples of federal support for the state.

According to the governor, $865 million had been approved for the rail project, while China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, the contractor, had received $300 million in mobilisation funds.

On education, Sani said Kaduna State had benefited from the establishment or upgrading of federal institutions, including the Federal University of Education, Zaria, the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, and the proposed Shehu Musa Yar’adua University of Petroleum Studies in Kaduna.

He also mentioned the conversion of Kaduna Polytechnic into a Federal University of Technology.

He argued that the projects and interventions should encourage residents to support Tinubu at the polls.

Sani urged the people of Kaduna State to reciprocate what he described as the President’s development efforts by voting massively for him in the 2027 election.

The opposition parties had not responded to the governor’s criticisms in the report.

Also read: ADC Tells INEC to Resist Pressure to Change 2027 Election Date

His comments on their campaign activities and projected election results represent his assessment of the political situation.