By Zuleihat Owuiye, Nigeria

The City Boy Movement (CBM) in Oyo State has launched efforts to strengthen its grassroots network across the state’s 33 local government areas ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The movement aims to mobilise support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming polls.

The strategy was unveiled on Monday in Ibadan during the inauguration of the movement’s state and local government executive councils. Leaders used the occasion to call on members to prioritise collective goals, improve grassroots engagement and work towards electoral victories for the APC at all levels.

Speaking on behalf of the state director, Femi Onireti, Olumide Alli urged members to put aside personal ambitions and focus on the movement’s shared political objectives.

Alli said the organisation was established to support Tinubu’s return to office in 2027 while working to secure victories for other APC candidates across the country.

He stressed that the movement needed to turn its numerical strength into effective political mobilisation, particularly at the local government level.

According to him, the Tinubu administration deserves another term because of what he described as its performance across different sectors of the economy and its continuation of projects inherited from previous administrations.

“Tinubu in the past three years has touched all the sectors of the economy. He has continued with all the projects inherited from the previous administrations. Some have been completed while works are ongoing on others,” Alli said.

He added that Nigerians should give the president another opportunity to continue the policies and projects initiated since taking office in 2023.

“In order to continue with the good works that was started in 2023, Nigerians should allow Tinubu to continue in office in 2027,” he stated.

APC chairman urges mobilisation of young voters

The Oyo State APC Chairman, Chief Moses Alake Adeyemo, also called on the City Boy Movement to use its growing membership to strengthen the party’s chances in the 2027 elections.

Adeyemo highlighted the importance of young people in determining electoral outcomes, urging members to engage the youth population and channel their political influence towards the party’s campaign.

He noted that young people constitute a significant segment of Nigeria’s population and could play an important role in deciding the outcome of the next general elections.

“The nation’s population figure shows that the youth population is more than any other age groups. That is why we are calling on you to maximise this to the advantage of the party in 2027,” he said.

The APC chairman also expressed confidence in the calibre of candidates the party would present for elective positions, arguing that the party had an advantage over its political rivals.

“Other contending political parties cannot match our party in terms of the qualities of the candidates that we are presenting for the various elective positions,” Adeyemo said.

However, he cautioned that having strong candidates would not automatically translate into electoral victories without proper coordination and unity among party members.

He therefore urged the movement’s leaders and members to work together, avoid internal divisions and concentrate their efforts on securing victories at the polls.

“What we need to do is to work as a team and dissipate our energies on how to win the elections in 2027,” he added.

Movement prepares for 2027 elections

The inauguration of the state and local government executive councils is expected to provide the City Boy Movement with an organisational structure for its political activities across Oyo State.

By establishing leadership teams at both state and local government levels, the movement intends to expand its reach and improve coordination among supporters ahead of the elections.

Its mobilisation strategy is focused on building stronger grassroots networks across the state’s 33 local government areas, with particular attention to engaging young people and encouraging support for APC candidates.

The 2027 general elections are expected to generate increased political activity as parties and support groups begin organising their campaigns and consolidating their support bases.

For the City Boy Movement in Oyo State, the immediate task is to translate its newly inaugurated leadership structure into coordinated grassroots activity in support of Tinubu and other APC candidates.