President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday held a closed-door meeting with Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas and selected lawmakers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, in what appears to be the latest round of high-level political consultations ahead of the 2027 elections.
The meeting, which followed the Jummah prayer at the State House mosque, was not listed on the President’s official schedule, adding to speculation about its purpose. Among those present was the Chief Whip of the House, Usman Kumo, alongside other yet-to-be-identified members of the House.
While details of the discussions remain undisclosed, the timing has drawn attention. The engagement comes just two days after Senate leaders, led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, held a similar closed-door session with the President at the Villa.
That earlier meeting was reportedly dominated by concerns over automatic return tickets for lawmakers ahead of the next general elections. However, Tinubu is said to have rejected the proposal, instead reaffirming the authority of state governors to determine candidates within their states.
The President’s stance was further reinforced during a separate meeting with governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), where he reportedly gave them the green light to oversee the party’s primaries in line with the Electoral Act.
Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago confirmed the directive, stating that governors have been empowered to conduct primaries through consensus or direct voting methods.
The developments have unsettled many federal lawmakers, particularly those with strained relationships with their state governors, as control over party structures at the state level often determines political survival.
With the APC already fixing May 15 for its House of Representatives primaries and the sale of nomination forms set to begin, the series of back-to-back meetings at the Villa signals intensifying behind-the-scenes negotiations that could shape the party’s internal balance of power ahead of 2027.
For now, the silence around Friday’s meeting leaves more questions than answers, but the pattern is becoming clear: the battle for tickets has quietly begun.
