As the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Area Council election approaches on 21 February 2026, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Okezie Kalu stated on Friday that the All Progressives Congress, APC, will no longer lose elections in the nation’s capital city.
Kalu made this known while briefing journalists shortly after the inauguration of the 138-member APC National Campaign Council for the FCT Area Council election.
The Deputy Speaker, who also serves as the Secretary of the Council, is chaired by the Governor of Kwara State and chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Kalu, who promised to rally residents of the city, especially his Igbo people in their numbers, to vote for the candidates of the party, also said the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led APC administration has done tremendously well in not just impacting the urban areas of FCT but also making governance felt even at the grassroots.
The Deputy Speaker appealed to the residents of FCT to vote for the party’s candidates for the six chairmanship positions and 68 councillorship seats so that the party’s development blueprint would be cascaded throughout the nation’s capital.
“It will no longer be mentioned that APC lost the election in Abuja. That was in the past. I am at the helm of affairs to make sure that the bulk vote of the Igbo communities in Abuja will be harvested for the greatest party within the Black race, called APC.
“Under the government of President Tinubu, there is a great difference from what it used to be and what it is at the moment. I want to also thank the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who has done tremendously well in not just impacting the urban areas of FCT but also making governance felt even at the grassroots.
“These are our campaign tools. That is what we are taking to the market, beyond posters and radio jingles, which will be our campaign slogans in the FCT. We are saying the fact speaks for itself. You can feel our development. You can touch and experience what we have brought as dividends of democracy.
“So there is going to be less work for us to do. Yes, we struggled in the past because there was no visible evidence of the impact of the government within the FCT. We are here to convince our people that the government has done this for the people of the FCT and the residents that they are charged to do more if allowed to provide leadership in the six area councils of this FCT and in the 68 council memberships of the city.
While inaugurating the council, APC National Chairman Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda charged members to work relentlessly toward delivering total victory for the party, expressing strong confidence in the council’s leadership, headed by Kwara State Governor AbdulRazaq, and describing the team as capable and battle-ready.
He further disclosed that three governors, Hope Uzodimma, Mai Mala Buni, and Mohammed Umar Bago, were appointed as co-chairmen of the high-powered council.
In his response to questions on the political activities of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi, who are reportedly campaigning for ADC candidates, Yilwatda dismissed their efforts as inconsequential, stressing that “the APC’s mobilisation strategy is deeply rooted at the grassroots and spans all regions of the country.”
He said, “Our campaign is not selective. It is ongoing across communities, cutting across tribes and regions. Governors from every geopolitical zone are engaging directly with the people. We are mobilising more than any other party, and we are confident of victory.”
In his remarks, the Campaign Council Chairman, Governor AbdulRazaq, commended the party leadership for the confidence reposed in the council, describing the assignment as a responsibility and an opportunity to deepen democratic dividends for FCT residents.
“This campaign is not just about rallies; it is about results, winning through strategy, effective mobilisation, and genuine grassroots engagement,” he said.
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