The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) in Kano has distanced itself from comments attributed to its National Publicity Secretary, Professor Muhd Tukur Baba, suggesting the group opposed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s potential sole candidacy for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket in 2027.
Addressing journalists on Wednesday, the ACF Kano State Chairman, Gwani Farouk Umar, dismissed the report carried by the BBC, stressing that the remarks did not represent the forum’s official position.
“What the spokesman said was not with our consent, and we are not happy about it. We are not politicians and we do not take sides with candidates,” Umar stated.
He explained that the Kano chapter had disavowed the statement and urged the national leadership of the ACF to carefully scrutinize political declarations before they are made public. According to him, this was not the first time such an incident had occurred, recalling a previous situation where a representative of the forum endorsed a candidate, only for the ACF to later issue a denial.
Umar also called on the leadership to caution Professor Baba to prevent a recurrence.
He highlighted that prior to the 2023 general elections, the ACF had engaged political parties and secured commitments to its demands, but the body has never endorsed individual aspirants.
In a separate remark, the Kano ACF chairman commended Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for presenting a bill to the state assembly seeking full autonomy for local governments. He urged lawmakers to pass the bill and called on anti-corruption agencies to ensure prudent use of public funds.
