500 women groups endorse Tinubu’s re-election as First Lady assures better Nigeria

Hon. Princess Gloria Akobundu, PhD, has thrown her weight behind the leadership of the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, as more than 500 women support groups collapsed their structures into the Women Wing of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC PCC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The development took place on Monday in Abuja during the APC Women stakeholders’ mobilisation and empowerment pre-inaugural summit, convened by the First Lady at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre.

The summit, which brought together APC women leaders and stakeholders from across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, formed part of the party’s preparations for the 2027 presidential election and its broader grassroots mobilisation strategy.

Recent reports put attendance at thousands of women stakeholders, while the APC women mobilisation directorate has announced a nationwide drive ahead of the election.

According to the organisers, the participating support groups, drawn from the six geopolitical zones, represent millions of Nigerian women voters and formally endorsed the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima.

Coordination of women

Speaking with journalists at the event, Akobundu, a member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council Women Mobilisation Wing and Secretary of the APC PCC Faith-Based Mobilisation (Christians), said the gathering demonstrated the growing coordination among women across the country.

She declared that Nigeria was “firmly on the path of renewed greatness,” while expressing support for the message and leadership provided by the First Lady.

Akobundu urged women across the country, particularly those in the South-East, to strengthen their grassroots mobilisation and communicate the policies and programmes of the Federal Government to their communities.

“I urge women voters everywhere to ensure the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the consolidation of the good works already set in motion,” she said.

“Nigeria is on the path of renewed greatness. Continuity is essential if we are to complete the transformation that has begun.”

First Lady solicits women’s support

The First Lady, in her address, called on the women to take the message of the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda 2.0 to their respective communities.

She said the theme of the programme, “From Reforms to Prosperity,” reflected what she described as the progress being recorded by the administration.

“Our economy is stabilising. Inflation is coming down. Our foreign reserves are growing. Investors are returning to Nigeria. Our farmers are getting more support,” Senator Tinubu said.

She also cited access to student loans through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) as one of the initiatives of the administration, saying the scheme was helping students access higher education.

The First Lady urged the women to return to their states and communities and explain the administration’s policies to Nigerians.

“Tell everyone as you go back to your various states that you have a leader who is bold enough to take difficult decisions in the beginning. He is a leader who can be trusted to lead us into prosperity,” she said.

Senator Tinubu also called on the women to speak with one voice and support the APC at the polls.

“What you will see on the ballot box is APC. We’re here to promote APC, nothing less. From Presidency, governorship, National Assembly and State Assembly, that is what we are here for,” she declared.

She disclosed plans for six zonal mega rallies, which would culminate in a grand finale in Abuja, as part of the women’s mobilisation programme.

The First Lady also thanked the women for their support for the President and the administration, urging them not to relent in their grassroots engagements.

“Thank you for standing by him, thank you for believing in the Renewed Hope Agenda. Thank you for your determination to vote for Mr President for a second term,” she said.

“Thank you for praying, thank you for not giving up on Nigeria.”

Empowerment of women

The summit also featured an empowerment programme through which women beneficiaries received livelihood-support items, including tricycles, sewing machines, refrigerators, agricultural implements and other productive equipment.

The organisers said the intervention was designed to support women’s economic activities and strengthen their capacity to contribute to household and community development.

Congratulating the beneficiaries, Akobundu urged them to make productive use of the items provided to them.

“These items are not mere gifts; they are instruments of economic liberation,” she said.

“I congratulate every woman who has received these tools today. Use them diligently, productively and purposefully so that your families, communities and the nation at large will feel the positive impact.”

Akobundu said the empowerment component of the summit was significant because political participation, according to her, should be complemented by measures that improve the economic capacity of women.

She urged the beneficiaries to see the items as opportunities to expand their businesses, create employment and improve their families’ livelihoods.

The event also provided a platform for APC women leaders to discuss grassroots mobilisation, political participation and the role of women in the 2027 electoral process.

The summit attracted First Ladies of APC-controlled states, state women leaders, grassroots organisers, faith-based mobilisers, professionals, entrepreneurs and representatives of various women support groups.

Recent reports said the event was expected to attract more than 20,000 women stakeholders from across the country, while the APC women mobilisation directorate has separately spoken of ambitious targets for women’s support for the Tinubu-Shettima ticket.

The mobilisation drive is coming as the APC intensifies its preparations for the 2027 elections, with party structures increasingly focusing on grassroots engagement and the participation of women.

Akobundu particularly appealed to women in the South-East to become more active in communicating the administration’s programmes to communities in the region.

She said the Renewed Hope message should reach women at the grassroots, including traders, farmers, entrepreneurs, professionals and young women.

The former federal lawmaker had, ahead of the summit, highlighted programmes including NELFUND, consumer credit, infrastructure development, social-protection interventions, digital skills and youth empowerment as areas she said should be consolidated.

She said women remained critical stakeholders in national development and should therefore play an active role in political organisation and decision-making.

The summit also featured calls for stronger grassroots networks and greater participation of women in governance, with participants urged to translate their mobilisation efforts into sustained engagement at state, local government, ward and community levels.

For Akobundu, the gathering represented more than a political meeting, describing it as an opportunity to empower women, strengthen their networks and encourage them to participate actively in the political process.

She maintained that women should use their influence in their communities to promote peaceful participation and encourage citizens to understand the issues surrounding the forthcoming elections.

As the delegates returned to their respective states, the organisers said they would continue with grassroots mobilisation and community-level engagements ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The summit therefore marked another phase in the APC’s women mobilisation efforts, with the party seeking to coordinate its women supporters under a unified structure as preparations for the 2027 presidential contest gather momentum.