President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to tackling insecurity, pledging improved welfare and better remuneration for personnel of the armed forces and police.
The President gave the assurance on Tuesday at the All Progressives Congress (APC) rally held at the Dutse Township Stadium in Jigawa State, where he also thanked residents for their support.
Tinubu said his government was strengthening security agencies and improving the welfare of personnel to enable them to discharge their responsibilities effectively.
“We will conquer insecurity. We’ve been through many wars. We will defeat our enemies. Enemies of unity, enemies of stability, enemies of hope,” he declared.
The President added that his administration was strengthening the police and armed forces while ensuring that personnel received better salaries, irrespective of their states of origin.
At the rally, Tinubu presented the APC campaign manifesto, titled From Reforms to Prosperity, outlining his administration’s achievements and proposed programmes in infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, security and other sectors.
He described the document as a roadmap for consolidating ongoing economic reforms, expanding opportunities and delivering prosperity to Nigerians.
Defending the removal of the petrol subsidy, the President accused political opponents advocating its restoration of misleading Nigerians, questioning how they intended to finance infrastructure development and other public commitments if the policy were reversed.
“Those who think they should bring the subsidy back are liars. How will they pay for those commitments? How will you repair the roads? How will you maintain them? How will you function?” he asked.
Tinubu maintained that savings from subsidy removal had enabled the Federal Government to undertake projects across the country’s geopolitical zones, assuring Nigerians that the benefits of the reforms would continue to emerge.
On agriculture, he promised additional support for small-scale farmers through financing, mechanisation and irrigation.
“We will reward small-scale farmers. Interest-free loans for farmers are coming. Prosperity is coming. Food security will happen,” he said.
The President urged Jigawa residents to participate actively in the forthcoming general elections and vote for APC candidates at all levels.
Earlier, Tinubu commissioned the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Multi-Purpose Skills Acquisition Centre and the Renewed Hope Technical Services Centre in Dutse. He also virtually inaugurated the three-kilometre dualised Old Police Station–Palace Road.
He further commissioned 400 tractors and other agricultural equipment procured by the Jigawa State Government to boost mechanised farming and improve food production.
In his address, Governor Umar Namadi commended the President for development initiatives in Jigawa and other parts of Northern Nigeria.
He highlighted the Greater Hadejia Water Project, which he said was 60 per cent complete, the Katsina–Maradi rail line and federal interventions in education, agriculture and social welfare.
Namadi also appreciated Tinubu for approving Federal Colleges of Education in Dutse and Hadejia, as well as establishing the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), through which thousands of students from the state had benefited.
He equally acknowledged the Conditional Cash Transfer programme, which he said had provided relief to vulnerable households.
The governor recalled Tinubu’s promise during the 2023 election campaign to address Dutse’s persistent water shortage, noting that the President had taken steps towards fulfilling the commitment.
However, he appealed for federal intervention in the ecological challenges confronting Dutse and Hadejia, describing the problems as beyond the capacity of the state government.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima also urged Jigawa residents to sustain their support for Tinubu, recalling the President’s political contributions to Northern leaders, including former President Muhammadu Buhari’s successful presidential campaigns in 2015 and 2019.
Shettima also referenced Tinubu’s past support for former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former EFCC chairman Nuhu Ribadu during their respective presidential ambitions, urging Northerners to reciprocate his political goodwill by supporting the APC in 2027.
Similarly, the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, challenged opposition parties to present alternative economic and social policies rather than engage in divisive politics.
Sokoto State Governor Ahmed Aliyu, speaking on behalf of the Progressive Governors Forum, also called for support for Tinubu, describing his leadership as focused and determined to steer Nigeria towards economic recovery and prosperity.
Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni and the President’s Special Adviser on Political Affairs, Ibrahim Masari, equally commended the administration and urged APC supporters to mobilise behind the party’s candidates in the 2027 elections.
Other dignitaries at the rally included Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, APC governors, ministers and other party leaders.