Candidates of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) have lamented that the party’s presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, is not visible in Bauchi State and the wider North-East region ahead of the 2027 general elections, making it difficult for them to produce campaign posters featuring his picture.

They therefore urged him to increase his presence in the state and across the North-East to attract support for all the party’s candidates.

The concerns were raised by the Bauchi State IBBN Campaign Council for the SDP presidential candidate, headed by Jeremiah DanAsabe, during a strategic stakeholders’ meeting held on Friday in Bauchi.

The meeting brought together the state SDP executives, IBBN members and the party’s candidates, alongside the 20-member IBBN Campaign Council, comprising representatives of different support groups. The council members were inaugurated on September 12, 2026, in Bauchi State alongside their counterparts from other North-East states.

DanAsabe said that during his tour of Bauchi’s local government areas and the metropolis, he identified significant gaps that could pose major challenges and required immediate attention.

The candidates who attended the meeting described it as timely and welcomed the involvement and active participation of the Initiative for Better and Brighter Nigeria (IBBN), led by its Bauchi State Coordinator, Ambassador Jeremiah DanAsabe.

However, the major concerns they raised included the lack of campaign posters featuring the party’s candidates, particularly the presidential and governorship candidates, in the state. They lamented that the situation had created a disconnect.

They pointed out that most of them could not produce posters featuring the presidential candidate because he was not visible in the state. They called for immediate action to address the issue and improve the party’s visibility.

On the poor publicity surrounding the presidential candidate, Mr Kobi, a state party executive, stressed that Prince Adewole Adebayo was not known in the North-East. He said the party’s candidates would not produce posters featuring him alongside their own until he made himself known in Bauchi.

The candidates also lamented what they described as a national disconnect, blaming the national headquarters for failing to convene meetings and thereby keeping them in the dark about the party’s affairs.

A candidate from Toro Local Government Area said Bauchi State was the “Heartbeat of the North-East” and urged the party’s presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, to engage more closely with the candidates and hold strategic discussions with them on how to effectively mobilise grassroots support ahead of the 2027 general elections.

On what was described as a snub during the National Convention, a House of Representatives candidate for Darazo-Ganjuwa Federal Constituency said the SDP in Bauchi State was not carried along during the national convention held in Bauchi. He, however, commended the IBBN leadership for reaching out to party members.

Earlier, in his welcome remarks, the SDP State Chairman, Malam Bala Ismail Zidanga, said the main purpose of the strategic meeting was to build a united front between IBBN and the SDP in Bauchi State ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The chairman called on Nigerians to support SDP candidates at all levels during the elections to ensure a better and brighter Nigeria.

He described the SDP as the best alternative to the country’s present situation, saying the party had people of integrity who were ready to make sacrifices for the good of Nigeria.

Also speaking on campaign strategies, particularly those of IBBN, the Bauchi State Coordinator, Ambassador Jeremiah DanAsabe, emphasised the need for unity among stakeholders to build a formidable team that would tour the state and mobilise support for the candidates.

He assured the gathering that IBBN was ready to participate actively in the campaign process, as directed by its national leader, and urged all those involved to remain committed to their responsibilities.

Ambassador Godwin Yahaya, also a member of the campaign council, said in his report that grassroots mobilisation by IBBN was ongoing across the state. He described the response as encouraging, noting that people were accepting the call to support the SDP.

The SDP State Vice Chairman described IBBN as a strong movement that had chosen to support the party’s candidates in the 2027 general elections.

He, however, stressed the importance of unity and commitment to the project to enable the party to compete with candidates of other political parties in the state.

The SDP Local Government Chairman, Alhaji Abubakar, appreciated IBBN for its timely support and urged the candidates to take ownership of their local government campaigns.

At the end of the meeting, the stakeholders resolved that harmony and unity among IBBN, the state party leadership, local government structures and candidates were mandatory ahead of the 2027 general elections. They also agreed that joint grassroots mobilisation should continue.

The candidates were urged to take ownership of their local government campaigns, while Prince Adewole Adebayo was called upon to visit Bauchi State urgently to improve his visibility across the North-East and boost support for himself, the SDP and other party candidates.

The stakeholders also resolved that the national secretariat should convene regular harmonisation meetings and that direct telephone contact between the presidential candidate and Bauchi candidates should be established immediately. (Nigerian Tribune)