On Wednesday last week, the All Progressives Congress, APC, held a rare National Executive Council, NEC, meeting at its national headquarters in Abuja, apparently for the specific intent to pass a vote of confidence on its leader, President Bola Tinubu; National Chairman, Umar Ganduje and other major party officeholders. Tinubu has thus been cleared to contest the 2027 presidential election virtually unopposed.

The APC has continued to copy the procedures laid down by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in its glory days as a ruling party. The same refrain of “No vacancy in Aso Rock in 2027” is being chorused. Many analysts believe the meeting was held in response to the political pussyfooting of some erstwhile APC leaders, notably former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai, who has severally visited now reclusive former president, Muhammadu Buhari, and former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, a front line PDP leader.

The meeting, which exposed the widening crack in the party, kind of opens the curtains for the beginning of the 2027 political season. In every democracy, there is a time to govern and a time to combine governance with heavy politicking.

We hope that the governments elected less than two years ago at the federal and state levels will resist the temptation of investing too much time and resources on politicking so early in the day. Though many governors have shown great promise, we need to see some of their efforts come to fruition before the full political season comes into play.

We are encouraged by the restrained tone of the president when he accepted his party’s endorsement. He made it clear that the road to Uhuru is still a distance away, but that the nation is steadily moving in that direction. His tone did not sound too political. Rather, he focused more on government’s efforts and the gradual return of stability, especially in the economy.

The main problems that Tinubu inherited – widespread insecurity, the economy in distress and Nigerians reeling from Buhari’s eight-year misrule – were worsened by the shock therapies he considered necessary. After almost two years, Tinubu’s draconian economic policies appear to be achieving a measure of stability.

Following the restoration of our domestic refining capacity, the cost of fuel which multiplied by over 500 per cent is gradually easing. Inflation has lowered from 34.80 last year to 24.48 in January this year. The Naira to Dollar exchange that was heading toward the N2,000 mark has dropped below N1,500. Food is more available and affordable.

But the government still has a lot to do. Cost of living is still unbearable, and insecurity remains out of control in most parts of the country. Businesses are still suffering. We need a lot more time to fix governance before returning to politics.

Let’s keep our eyes on the ball.