By Atiku Galadima, Maiduguri
The North-East needs the political experience and networks of former Borno State Governor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, to help President Bola Ahmed Tinubu secure the region in the 2027 presidential election, the North-East Coalition for Truth, Justice and Responsible Leadership (NECTJRL) has said.
The coalition spoke in Maiduguri on Sunday in response to a petition opposing Sheriff’s reported appointment as the North-East Zonal Campaign Coordinator for the Tinubu-Shettima 2027 campaign.
Chairman of the coalition, Alhaji Abba Chima, said the former governor’s long years in politics and knowledge of the region made him an important figure in the campaign ahead of the election.
He said the coalition was concerned that the petition, purportedly issued by a group known as the Borno IDPs Welfare Group and based in Kano State, was bringing the plight of displaced people into a political contest.
“We have investigated and established that there is no formal or officially registered IDP camp in Kano State. This is a verifiable fact, not our opinion,” Chima said.
He challenged the group to explain whom it represented and where its members were based.“A group invoking the IDP identity from a location with no known camp owes the public clarity: who exactly do you represent, and where do your members reside?” he asked.
The coalition said the petition was part of a campaign against Sheriff, which it claimed had repeatedly been driven from outside the North-East. It cited earlier opposition said to have come from Kebbi and Katsina states.
Chima described Sheriff as a politician with more than two decades of experience in public life, saying his political relationships extended beyond Borno and the North-East.
According to him, Sheriff’s experience at both state and national levels could be useful to the Tinubu-Shettima campaign at a time political parties were beginning to position themselves for the 2027 election.
He said the coalition would not allow the plight of internally displaced persons to be used as a political tool.
“We urge this purported group to reconsider its position, to be transparent about who it truly represents, and to redirect its energy toward the real and urgent needs of our displaced people: resettlement with dignity,” he said.Chima also warned that the coalition would expose those it alleged were behind the campaign against Sheriff if the attacks continued.“NECTJRL remains ready to engage anyone in good faith, but we will not be silent while our region’s pain is used as a costume for a campaign,” he said.The coalition urged stakeholders in the North-East to focus on issues affecting the region, particularly the resettlement of displaced communities, while supporting what it described as an inclusive campaign ahead of the 2027 election.
