2027: Enugu and Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda

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Discourse

August 4, 2025 by Our Reporter

By Chukwunonye Okereke

As Nigeria gradually approaches the defining year of 2027, political permutations are already gathering momentum across the country. At the heart of these early alignments lies a crucial question: who will drive President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in regions where the All Progressives Congress (APC) seeks to establish a deeper foothold?

In the Southeast — and particularly in Enugu State — the answer does not require guesswork. One name continues to stand tall, not just for his loyalty but also for his strategic relevance and unbroken grassroots connection: Chief Uche Nnaji, the current Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology.

While many politicians in the region stood aloof or in outright opposition to President Tinubu’s emergence in 2023, Nnaji took a principled stand by flying the APC flag in a hostile political climate. His commitment to the party, the president, and the idea of national integration makes him not just a participant in the Renewed Hope project but a pillar of its future success in Enugu.

It is no secret that the APC remains politically isolated in much of the Southeast. In such an environment, loyalty is not mere symbolism—it is sacrificial leadership. Chief Uche Nnaji stood firm when many sought the convenient refuge of political expediency. His 2023 campaign, while falling short electorally, succeeded in planting a resilient structure for the APC across the 17 local government areas of Enugu State.

This loyalty should not be overlooked or taken for granted as 2027 approaches.

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The presidency and the APC national structure must resist the temptation to court familiar but flawed political names in Enugu—names that have proven either electorally irrelevant or disconnected from the masses.

Many of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) bigwigs who assured President Tinubu during the last general election that they would deliver for him in the state could not even secure an appreciable vote for the APC in their senatorial districts. It is only by the grace of former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike that they are still relevant in the main opposition party. Under the current dispensation, would they be able to galvanise support for the president? How?

Many of the PDP chieftains assuring the president in the current dispensation ahead of 2027 are only interested in using his growing influence for political survival. They do not believe in the ideology of the APC. Their desperation stems from the discontent they are facing among the electorate in the key Southeast state. The current economic pressure in the state, occasioned by high inflation and insecurity, has left many disenfranchised.

The Enugu State Government is not helping matters. The government’s demolition of structures in the state, targeting homes, shops, and long-standing businesses, has created deep social resentment. Instead of empathy and urban renewal, many residents feel a sense of displacement and betrayal.

Chief Nnaji offers a vastly different approach. He is neither burdened by past governance failures nor detached from his people. His technocratic exposure as a minister in the Tinubu administration is balanced with street credibility and cultural resonance in Enugu communities. His emphasis on innovation, education, youth empowerment, and digital skills matches the administration’s long-term vision.

Nnaji is the face of a new APC—clean, competent, and inclusive.

The politics of 2027 must be grounded in truth, and the APC cannot afford to gamble with recycled politicians who have lost touch with reality and are seeking survival strategies. The stakes are too high. The minister represents both continuity and credibility. He is one of the few Igbo leaders who openly supported the president in the region, and thereby risked political capital.

If Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda is to resonate in Enugu in 2027, it must wear the face of Uche Nnaji. He is not just a political figure—he is a pivot, a stabiliser, and a bridge between the Southeast and the nation’s centre of power.