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Saturday, 31 October 2026Lagos · LondonUpdated 11:42 GMT

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2027 elections
Reported

Tinubu's daughter warns voters against Atiku and Obi at Abuja launch

President Bola Tinubu
Photo: Nosa Asemota / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Mujidat Folasade Tinubu-Ojo, the daughter of President Bola Tinubu and Iyaloja-General of Nigeria, has waded into the 2027 presidential race with a warning to voters about two of her father's main rivals.

What she said

Speaking at the launch of the Iyaloja General Movement for Renewed Hope Initiatives at Eagle Square in Abuja on Thursday, 29 October 2026, Tinubu-Ojo reportedly urged Nigerians not to support Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) or Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC). She argued that if either of them won, they would undo the progress made by the current government and set the country back. The remarks were reported on Saturday, 31 October.

The movement

The new group is meant to mobilise market women and traders across the country to support President Tinubu's re-election. As Iyaloja-General, Tinubu-Ojo is the ceremonial head of market women's associations nationwide, a role her father's supporters see as a valuable link to grassroots voters.

Background

Several pro-Tinubu groups have been launched in recent weeks, including a two-million-man march announced by Atiku's son, Abba, and the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement backed by Tompolo. Atiku and Obi are both campaigning hard, and the debate over the economy, rising prices and the government's borrowing has dominated the race so far. Neither the ADC nor the NDC had responded to her comments at the time of the report.

How people reacted

APC supporters welcomed the launch, while opposition supporters accused the President's family of turning a traditional market leadership role into a campaign platform.

More gist

2027 electionsReported
President Bola Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate
Photo: Nosa Asemota / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Adamawa APC inaugurates 3,000-member campaign council, receives ADC and Labour defectors

Adamawa Governor Ahmadu Fintiri has reportedly inaugurated a campaign council of more than 3,000 members for the APC ahead of 2027, with retired General Buba Marwa as co-chairman. Defectors from the ADC and Labour Party were also received at the event in Yola.

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The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa State has inaugurated a campaign council of more than 3,000 members for the 2027 general elections, according to reports on Saturday, 31 October 2026.

What happened

Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri reportedly inaugurated the council at the Banquet Hall of Government House in Yola on Thursday, 29 October. Retired General Buba Marwa was named co-chairman, and the council includes representatives from the state's three senatorial zones and its communities. At the same event, a group of defectors from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Labour Party was received into the APC and presented to the state party chairman, Hamza Bello Madagali, by the party's North-East national vice chairman, Idris Shuaibu.

What was said

Speakers reportedly said the party would leave nothing to chance in its bid to win the state, and Fintiri warned that anti-party behaviour would not be tolerated. Madagali acknowledged that some stakeholders had been left off the initial list and appealed for patience.

Background

Adamawa is the home state of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the ADC presidential candidate, which makes the contest there especially significant. Buba Marwa is a former military governor of Lagos State and has headed the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. Party switching has been common across the country in the run-up to the elections, with governors and lawmakers moving between parties.

What happens next

The council is expected to begin campaigning across the state's local government areas in the coming weeks.

2027 electionsReported
A Nigeria Police armoured vehicle (stock image)
Stock image: theglobalpanorama / Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0

Sokoto ADC governorship candidate says his convoy was attacked near airport

Manir Muhammad Dan'iya, the ADC governorship candidate in Sokoto State, says his convoy was blocked and shot at near the Sokoto airport on Friday night, damaging his vehicles. He blames state security personnel, while police say anyone found responsible will face the law.

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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate for governor of Sokoto State, Manir Muhammad Dan'iya, has alleged that his convoy was attacked near the Sultan Abubakar III International Airport in Sokoto on Friday night, 30 October 2026.

What he says happened

According to his media aide, Aminu Abdullahi, the incident happened at about 9pm, shortly after Dan'iya had seen off former governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal at the airport. He alleged that members of the Sokoto State Marshal and Community Guard blocked the convoy, saying they were acting on orders to keep ADC members out of the state. He said efforts to calm the situation failed before shots were fired. Dan'iya reportedly escaped unhurt, but his bulletproof vehicles were damaged, and he said two Department of State Services officers attached to his security team were taken away. He also said he had noticed unusual deployments at several entry points into the state earlier in the day.

Official response

The Sokoto State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Ahmad Rufae, said the command would take necessary action and that anyone found responsible would face the law. The Sokoto State Government and the Marshal and Community Guard had not publicly responded at the time of the report, and the allegations have not been independently verified.

What he is asking for

Dan'iya reported the matter to the state Commissioner of Police and asked the Inspector-General of Police and the head of the DSS to investigate and secure the release of the two officers. He also called on the state government to explain the alleged orders.

Background

The incident is the latest in a string of reported attacks on opposition figures as campaigning for the January 2027 elections intensifies. On the same day, AAC presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore said he was attacked in Ado-Ekiti, and an APC rally in Katsina was disrupted earlier this week.

2027 elections
Peter Obi
Photo: VOA / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

Obi promises to go into the bush himself to rescue kidnap victims if elected

NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi has reportedly told a rally in Bayelsa State that he would personally go into forests to rescue kidnap victims if he becomes president. He also promised free primary education and at least 10,000MW of electricity, and criticised President Tinubu's foreign trips.

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Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has reportedly promised to personally lead efforts to rescue kidnap victims if he is elected in 2027.

What he said

Speaking at a campaign rally in Bayelsa State on Friday, 30 October 2026, Obi said that if anyone kidnapped schoolchildren or anyone else under his government, he would go into the bush himself. He said he had recently travelled by road through several states, including Enugu, Kogi, Nasarawa and Ebonyi, and that Nigeria's roads must be made safe. He said his government would start by uniting the country so that no region or group felt left out.

Other promises

Obi reportedly pledged that public money would be managed openly, that an NDC government would work with states to make primary education free, and that it would aim to generate, transmit and distribute at least 10,000 megawatts of electricity. He claimed current supply is far lower.

Criticism of Tinubu

Obi criticised President Bola Tinubu for not visiting Bayelsa, where oil was first discovered in Nigeria, and repeated his claim that the President spends a large part of the year abroad. The Presidency has previously rejected such claims, and had not responded to the latest remarks at the time of the report.

Background

Obi has held a series of town halls and rallies this week, including in Nasarawa, where he said election riggers would be jailed, and in Ebonyi. Insecurity, including kidnappings on highways and in schools, remains one of the biggest issues for voters ahead of the January 2027 elections.

2027 electionsReported
Atiku Abubakar in a pinstripe suit
Photo: Etauso / Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Atiku demands forensic audit of voter register after INEC admits AI-generated photos

ADC presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has called for an independent forensic audit of the voter register, after INEC admitted that some of its officers entered AI-generated photos. His campaign claims more than 20 million images may be involved and says it will go to court if INEC does not disclose the full details.

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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has demanded an independent forensic audit of Nigeria's voter register following INEC's admission that AI-generated photos were entered into it.

What he demanded

In a statement issued on Friday, 30 October 2026, by Phrank Shaibu, communications director of the ADC presidential campaign, Atiku called for the audit to be carried out by accredited experts with the participation of political parties, civil society groups and international observers. He asked that no disputed records be certified until the audit is complete, and that INEC name, suspend and prosecute every officer involved. He also asked the commission to preserve voter records, image files and access logs, and to publish the names of companies contracted to produce sensitive election materials. The statement warned that the campaign would go to court to force disclosure if INEC refused.

The 20 million claim

The statement claimed that more than 20 million AI-generated images may be involved. The campaign did not publish evidence for the figure, and INEC has not given a number of affected records.

INEC's position

INEC's ICT director, Lawrence Bayode, said this week that some registration officers with system access entered AI-generated and poor-quality photos, and that the commission knows how it happened but not why. Atiku's campaign described that explanation as an evasion. INEC says the online register is still being cleaned up and that the final version will be certified on 15 December.

What happens next

Other opposition parties are expected to join calls for an audit, and the issue is likely to dominate election debates in the coming weeks.