BY TAIBAT UMMI YAKUBU

Vice President Kashim Shettima on Wednesday met with Northern Nigerian artistes and other creative industry figures in Abuja as the All Progressives Congress (APC) steps up its mobilisation efforts ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The meeting, held at the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) Secretariat in Abuja, brought together entertainers and political leaders at a time when the ruling party is increasingly incorporating the creative industry into its campaign structure.

Shettima used the engagement to urge Northern creative professionals to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid, while highlighting what he described as opportunities created by the administration for artistes, filmmakers and musicians.

The Vice President said the Federal Government would continue to support the creative sector in Northern Nigeria, particularly initiatives aimed at expanding businesses, preserving cultural heritage and creating employment opportunities.

The gathering was attended by several prominent APC figures, including former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, former Katsina State Governor Aminu Bello Masari, former Zamfara State Governor and Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Abdulaziz Yari, as well as former FCT Minister Aliyu Modibbo.

The meeting comes shortly after the APC unveiled its expanded Presidential Campaign Council for the 2027 election, which includes a dedicated Creative Sector Mobilisation directorate.

Ahmed Bala heads the directorate, while Kannywood star Ali Nuhu, Mansura Isa and veteran actor Adebayo Salami were listed as deputy directors. Zack Orji is among those serving within the secretariat of the directorate.

The structure reflects the growing role being assigned to entertainers in the party's campaign machinery, particularly in reaching younger voters and audiences that consume political messages through music, film, social media and popular culture.

For Northern Nigeria, the strategy carries particular significance given the reach of Kannywood, Hausa-language music and other forms of popular entertainment across the region.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Yari urged the artistes to assess the Tinubu administration based on its record, while rejecting claims that the North had been sidelined under the present government.

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Masari also commended the creative professionals for their support and encouraged them to take advantage of government programmes targeting the entertainment industry.

Ganduje, who is also a senior figure in the APC campaign structure, called for greater investment in the entertainment industry, particularly in infrastructure and training for emerging artistes.

The gathering was also attended by representatives of Triple-R For Renewed Hope, a group of Northern performing artistes that publicly pledged support for Tinubu and APC candidates in the 2027 elections. The group's leaders said they planned to mobilise support across the North while also drawing attention to challenges facing creative professionals, including infrastructure deficits and welfare concerns.

The political engagement comes as several groups across Northern Nigeria establish structures aimed at mobilising support for the 2027 presidential contest.

Beyond the political dimension, the meeting places the creative economy and electoral mobilisation in the same conversation. Northern artistes have the potential to reach large audiences through entertainment platforms, while politicians have increasingly sought to use celebrity influence to connect with younger and grassroots voters.

The artistes, meanwhile, have long-standing concerns of their own, including piracy, inadequate production facilities, limited access to finance, intellectual property protection, taxation, skills development and opportunities to distribute their work beyond Nigeria.

Shettima has previously engaged creative-sector stakeholders on the government's plans for the creative economy. Wednesday's meeting, however, took place within the campaign environment, giving it a more direct political character.

With the 2027 election approaching, the APC's expanding campaign architecture suggests that entertainers are being positioned not merely as performers at political events, but as part of a wider mobilisation network designed to take the party's message into communities and popular culture.