An interest group, Progressives Strategy Roundtable, has urged members of All Progressives Congress, APC, to guard against complacency ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The Convener of the roundtable, Mr Ismaeel Ahmed, who stated this yesterday in Abuja, called on APC members to engage in serious mobilisation of Nigerians to vote for the party in 2027.
Ahmed, a chieftain of APC, is the Executive Chairman of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, PCNGi.
The convener served as Senior Special Assistant on National Social Investment Programme to former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The roundtable was attended by heads of government agencies and Special Assistants to President Bola Tinubu, among others.
Ahmed explained that the programme was built on the conviction that every opportunity was a responsibility, noting that the confidence and trust reposed on those serving in government was not ornamental but one that carried obligation.
He added that the roundtable was to ensure deep thinking on what to do to ensure that APC remained relevant and victorious in the coming elections.
“Every opportunity is a responsibility; the opportunity before us is influence; it is contribution; let us proceed with clarity, discipline and purpose”, he said.
Ahmed added that the President had embarked on structural reforms that were neither cosmetic nor convenient, including fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification, revenue restructuring and energy transition.
He said that the reforms were not short-term popularity projects, but long-term corrections, stressing that structural reforms succeeded economically only when they were supported politically.
“Reform without organised support becomes vulnerable; reform without narrative clarity becomes misunderstood; reform without coordination becomes isolated.
“Victory is no longer about the number of registrations of members. It is about mobilisation; it is about trust; it is about who is organised, disciplined and credible; we must guard against complacency.
“The fact that we have 30 governors is not in itself a measure of organisation; it is not a guarantee of mobilization; it is not a proof of emotional connection with citizens.
“Political arithmetic does not automatically translate into political legitimacy. In some cases, seats may have crossed over but citizens may not have moved with them”, he said.
The convener noted that positions might have shifted but that people might still be persuadable, adding that authority might be consolidated at the top, yet distance might widen at the grassroots.
“If we are not careful, the very scale of our institutional presence can create a quiet chasm between government and the governed, and that gap, if left unattended, becomes fertile ground for discontent”, he said.
This, according to him, is why the work of the party’s members and government appointees becomes even more valid, adding that they are not to assume support, but to cultivate it.
“The President’s reforms must not remain policy achievements alone; they must become political capital; they must be translated consistently, intelligently and credibly into public understanding and public trust.
“Energy reform must be understood as transport cost relief; fiscal discipline must be understood as national stability and industrial policy as jobs.
“Exchange reform must be understood as competitiveness and long term resilience; if we do not translate policy into live meaning, others will translate it into grievance.
“If we do not organise support, others will organise opposition; if we mistake access for acceptance, we risk surprises”, he said.
Ahmed stated that realism should not produce anxiety but discipline, adding that there was strength in the Tinubu-led administration and courage in its reform direction.
He argued that while there was opportunity in the restructuring underway, there was still space to consolidate public confidence, but only if it was intentional.
The former presidential aide urged the party stakeholders and government appointees to identify the risks honestly and clarify the narratives strategically as well as map our collective platforms realistically, ahead of the general elections.
He also said that they should determine how time, resources, ideas and networks would be deliberately deployed in the general interest of APC.
