Raji, Ajiboye outline complementary strategy on election planning, messaging and grassroots engagement as APC National Chairman welcomes Forum’s intervention
The Forum of Chief Executives of Federal Parastatals has expressed its readiness to provide technical, strategic and institutional support to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), proposing a complementary structure focused on grassroots mobilisation, campaign messaging, election planning, monitoring and management ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The position was conveyed during the Forum’s engagement with the APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda Goshwe, and members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), where the Chief Executives presented their vision for stronger collaboration between government institutions, political stakeholders and the party.
Leading the delegation, Chairman of the Forum and Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of the National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI), Dr. Kazeem Kolawole Raji, said the Forum was conceived as more than an association of heads of government agencies. He described it as a platform for collaboration, knowledge-sharing, coordination and the exchange of ideas capable of contributing to national development.
“We are here not merely as Chief Executives occupying strategic positions in the Federal Government, but as professionals, public-sector leaders, political stakeholders and Nigerians deeply committed to the progress, stability and prosperity of our nation,” Raji said.
He stressed that public institutions have a responsibility to ensure that government programmes and achievements are properly understood by Nigerians, adding that the Forum would continue to encourage cooperation among Chief Executives in areas that advance national development.
“Where government has delivered, we should communicate it,” Raji said, while congratulating Yilwatda on his election as APC National Chairman at the party’s 2026 National Convention.
Raji expressed confidence that the APC leadership would continue to strengthen the party’s structures and deepen its engagement with Nigerians, saying the Forum was prepared to work constructively with relevant stakeholders to improve public understanding of government programmes, achievements and opportunities.
Building on the Chairman’s remarks, Otunba Biodun Ajiboye, Chairman of the Forum’s Media and Publicity Committee, gave a more detailed explanation of the Forum’s proposed role, describing its intervention as a technical partnership that could complement the work of the Presidential Campaign Council.
According to Ajiboye, the Forum has access to experienced professionals and administrators capable of contributing across different aspects of campaign organisation, including election planning, election monitoring and management, mobilisation, media management, strategic messaging and broader campaign coordination.
He emphasised that the Forum was not seeking to duplicate or compete with the PCC, but to establish a complementary mechanism capable of extending its reach and providing additional technical capacity where necessary.
Ajiboye also drew a distinction between the communication challenge of the 2023 presidential campaign and what he believes will define the 2027 contest.
According to him, the central campaign message in 2023 was necessarily built around what the APC candidate intended to do if elected President. By 2027, he argued, the conversation would have fundamentally changed from “what we will do” to “what we have done.”
For that reason, Ajiboye said Chief Executives of Federal Parastatals occupy a potentially useful position in communicating the administration’s record because they are directly involved in implementing programmes and policies across different sectors of government.
He proposed that the Forum could function as an additional technical and monitoring structure alongside the PCC, helping to identify communication gaps, strengthen campaign messaging and extend information to audiences that may not be adequately reached through the central campaign machinery.
“The communication apparatus for an election and campaign cannot be left to the PCC alone,” Ajiboye said in outlining the Forum’s position, stressing that the proposed structure would be complementary.
Ajiboye also praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s approach to governance, arguing that some of the administration’s major reforms demonstrated a willingness to confront structural problems despite their potential political cost. In his assessment, this reflected a President prepared to prioritise what he considered necessary long-term reforms even as another election approaches.
The Forum, he said, intends to return to the party with more detailed technical proposals and practical ideas on how its members could contribute to the 2027 campaign.
Responding to the delegation, APC National Chairman Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda Goshwe welcomed the Forum’s initiative and described its formation as timely.
According to remarks conveyed at the meeting, Yilwatda said the party recognised the potential role the Chief Executives could play in political communication and grassroots engagement and encouraged broad participation in the Forum among heads of relevant federal parastatals.
He stressed that electoral success requires different stakeholders to understand and perform their respective roles, while identifying grassroots mobilisation as an important component of the party’s preparations.
The National Chairman also welcomed the proposal for the Forum to develop a structure that could complement the Presidential Campaign Council, particularly in taking campaign information and government messaging closer to communities across the country.
He further indicated that the party was prepared to engage constructively with the Forum and explore broader interaction with Chief Executives of Federal Parastatals as discussions around the 2027 campaign develop.
Yilwatda also referenced President Tinubu’s long-term economic ambitions, saying government institutions have a responsibility to contribute within their respective mandates towards achieving the administration’s national development objectives.
The meeting consequently established a framework for further engagement between the APC leadership and the Forum, with both sides indicating an interest in exploring how professional expertise, institutional knowledge and grassroots networks could complement the party’s formal campaign architecture.
SIGNED :
Otunba Biodun AJIBOYE, FCIA, Frpa.
Chairman, Media & publicity committee
FORUM OF CEOS OF FEDERAL PARASTATALS