The appointment of Abdulaziz Yari as the director-general of President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 Presidential Campaign Council will strengthen the president’s re-election bid, Bamidele Atoyebi, convener of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group (BAT-IG), has said. Atoyebi said although Yari’s appointment had generated mixed reactions, his assessment of the senator’s political career and grassroots activities since September 2025 showed he was grounded and suited for the role.
The presidency on August 22, 2026, formally unveiled the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, with Yari as the director-general, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma as secretary and the president as chairman. Atoyebi said he had little knowledge of Yari’s political trajectory until September last year, when he learnt that the senator was seeking to work with support groups ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said this prompted him, as the convener of BAT-IG, to examine Yari’s political background and activities more closely. According to him, the assessment revealed an experienced politician with considerable grassroots reach and organisational capacity. Yari served as a member of the House of Representatives between 2007 and 2011 and was Governor of Zamfara State from 2011 to 2019.
He also served as chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum between 2015 and 2019 and currently represents Zamfara West Senatorial District in the National Assembly. Atoyebi said his assessment of Yari was further strengthened by a personal encounter with the political network around the senator. He recalled that he was once invited to engage former local government chairmen at a forum in Abuja and later discovered that Yari had sponsored the gathering and hosted the participants.
Although he arrived after Yari had left the venue, Atoyebi said he met the delegates and used the opportunity to present BAT-IG’s message in support of President Tinubu.