On March 18, 2026, President Bola Tinubu directed ministers and political appointees seeking elective offices ahead of the 2027 general elections to resign from their positions before participating in party primaries, in line with the Electoral Act.
Vanguard had reported that the directive, contained in a circular issued by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, was “pursuant to the provisions of Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, as well as the timetable issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission for party primaries.”
Barely months after complying with the directive, some former ministers who resigned to pursue political ambitions are already counting losses after failing to secure party tickets in the primaries conducted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 elections.
Among those who resigned were former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu; former Minister of Transportation, Saidu Alkali; former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar; former Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha; and former Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs, Yusuf Sununu.
While Onyejeocha and Sununu secured party tickets, Adelabu, Alkali and Tuggar suffered political setbacks in their respective states.
Adebayo Adelabu
Adelabu resigned as minister of power to contest the APC governorship ticket in Oyo State. However, the former minister suffered a heavy defeat to Senator Sarafadeen Alli during the primary election. Alli polled 578,143 votes, while Adelabu secured just 19,193 votes.
Before the primary, Adelabu had dismissed speculations that Alli enjoyed the backing of President Tinubu, insisting that the directive from Abuja was for a free, fair and transparent process.
“There was nothing like consensus arrangement. It was just a figment of their weird imagination,” he said at the time.
Following the outcome of the exercise, Adelabu rejected the result and alleged widespread irregularities, intimidation and manipulation during the primary.
According to him, some of his supporters were allegedly prevented from voting, intimidated and chased away from polling centres.
He vowed to petition the party leadership and demanded sanctions against those allegedly responsible for misconduct during the exercise.
Adelabu also insisted that if Tinubu were to support any aspirant in the race, “it would be me”.
Following his resignation, President Tinubu nominated Joseph Tegbe as the new minister of power, a nomination later confirmed by the Senate.
Saidu Alkali
Former Transportation Minister Saidu Alkali also resigned from the Federal Executive Council to pursue the APC governorship ticket in Gombe State.
However, his political ambition suffered a setback after he lost the primary to Jamilu Gwamna, who was widely believed to enjoy the support of Governor Inuwa Yahaya.
Alkali later boycotted the process, alleging lack of fairness, inclusiveness and credibility in the conduct of the primary.
Despite the boycott, the former minister still finished behind former minister of communications and digital economy, Isa Pantami.
Pantami polled 12,120 votes to emerge first runner-up, while Alkali secured 11,612 votes.
Chairman of the APC governorship election committee in the state, Senator Abubakar Danladi, disclosed that both Pantami and Alkali submitted withdrawal letters after the commencement of the electoral process, adding that their names had already appeared on the ballot papers.
Yusuf Tuggar
Unlike some ministers who delayed their resignation, former Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar submitted his resignation letter on March 30, 2026, barely a day before the deadline.
Announcing his decision, Tuggar said he resigned in compliance with President Tinubu’s directive and the Electoral Act.
“Today, I formally submitted my resignation letter as Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs at the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” he wrote at the time.
The former diplomat and ex-lawmaker, who once represented Gamawa Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, sought the APC governorship ticket in Bauchi State.
However, he lost to former Bauchi State governor, Mohammed Abubakar.
According to the chairman of the APC governorship election committee in Bauchi State, retired AIG John Bassey Abang, Abubakar polled 57,517 votes to defeat Tuggar, who secured 26,001 votes.
Following Tuggar’s resignation, President Tinubu appointed Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu as Minister of Foreign Affairs, she had previously served as minister of state in the same ministry.
The president also nominated Sola Enikanolaiye as minister of state for foreign affairs, with both appointments subsequently confirmed by the Senate.
