Presidency Disowns Tinubu, Shettima 2027 Billboards, Warns Supporters Against Early Campaigning

In a statement released on Sunday, Special Adviser to the President Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, expressed dismay over the increasing number of billboards, particularly in Abuja and Kano, displaying images of President Tinubu and First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu with campaign-style messaging for the next presidential election cycle.

The Presidency has distanced itself from a series of billboards surfacing across Nigeria promoting a 2027 re-election campaign for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, warning that such premature campaigning is illegal and unauthorised.

In a statement released on Sunday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, expressed dismay over the increasing number of billboards, particularly in Abuja and Kano, displaying images of President Tinubu and First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu with campaign-style messaging for the next presidential election cycle.

“While President Tinubu and Vice President Shettima greatly appreciate their teeming and loyal supporters across the country for their enthusiasm and continuing support, the two leaders do not support any campaign that breaches the laws of the land,” Onanuga stated

He stressed that the 2022 Electoral Act forbids any form of campaign activities ahead of the official schedule to be released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), warning that early campaigns “can undermine the integrity of the electoral process and create unfair advantages.”

The statement read, “As law-abiding leaders, President Tinubu and Vice President Shettima do not support any action that undermines our institutions and the electoral process.”

Onanuga emphasised that President Tinubu has neither authorised nor endorsed any person or group to begin campaign efforts on his behalf, whether through billboards, digital platforms, print, radio, or television.

“Until the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) sets the timetable for the 2027 elections, the President has not endorsed or authorised anyone or any group to mount a 2027 campaign for him through any media channel,” he noted.

The Presidency called on individuals and groups behind the ongoing deployment of 2027 campaign materials to “cease immediately,” urging all political stakeholders to respect the rule of law.

President Tinubu, according to the statement, remains focused on the current task of nation-building, with a particular emphasis on “economic revitalisation, human capital development, infrastructural renewal, social investment, and national security.”

“When INEC signals that the processes for the 2027 elections can start, President Tinubu will duly inform Nigerians of his plans,” Onanuga added.