Beyond politics: Lagos APC sets 2027 campaign in prayer mode

With the 2027 general elections drawing closer, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State has taken an unusual but familiar first step in Nigerian politics.

At the Onikan Stadium on Tuesday, party leaders, religious organisations, traditional institutions and supporters from across the state gathered not to unveil campaign posters or deliver political manifestos, but to commit the party’s electoral journey to God.

The interfaith prayer session was organised for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the APC’s Lagos State governorship candidate, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, and other candidates preparing to contest the 2027 elections.

The gathering brought together Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, APC state chairman Hon. Cornelius Ojelabi, religious leaders and organisations, traditional institutions and support groups from the state’s 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas.

Representatives of the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), led by Reverend Stephen Adegbite, Islamic organisations, traditional worshippers and other party supporters were also present.

For the APC leadership, the event was more than a religious ceremony. It was presented as the formal spiritual beginning of the party’s journey towards the 2027 polls.

Nothing Is Greater Than Prayer

Governor Sanwo-Olu captured the mood of the gathering in a simple declaration: “Nothing is greater than prayer.”

According to him, the party had fulfilled its responsibility of presenting its candidates and was now placing their political journey in the hands of God.

“There is nothing greater than prayer. You can see that this is a prayer answered because all we require for all our endeavours is prayer,” he said.

Sanwo-Olu said the prayer session marked the beginning of the party’s preparations for the elections, adding that the APC would soon move into its campaign activities.

“We have made public all our candidates. We commit our journey and our candidates into the hands of God. After this, we will commence our campaign without any trouble or worries,” he said.

The governor also stressed the importance of engaging stakeholders, saying the party was not taking any group for granted.

“We have followed the dictates of religion, and after this, we will go out to do what is expected of us. We are not taking any stakeholders for granted, and that is why we believe we will return victorious,” he added.

We are placing everything in God’s hands – Hamzat

For Hamzat, the prayer gathering represented an opportunity to surrender the party’s ambitions and political activities to God.

Expressing gratitude for the successful event, he urged participants to continue praying for the success of the elections and victory for Tinubu and other APC candidates.

“As we are starting, we believe we must place everything in the hands of our Creator. We believe in God as the controller of all our affairs,” Hamzat said.

He prayed for the success of Tinubu’s administration and the Sanwo-Olu government, while expressing confidence in his own bid to become Lagos governor.

“By the grace of God, I will emerge as the next governor of the state, alongside all our candidates,” he said.

A Prayer for Continuity

The Chairman of the Interfaith Prayers Planning Committee, Hon. Oyinlomo Danmole, said the event was deliberately organised to set the APC’s 2027 electoral journey on a prayerful footing.

“This is to set the 2027 elections in motion on prayer mode. I enjoin us all to pray for our candidates,” he said.

Danmole framed the prayer as a call for continuity, particularly at the national and state levels.

He praised the Tinubu administration over initiatives such as the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which he said had provided loans and grants to students and empowered more than one million beneficiaries.

He also commended the administration’s infrastructure and economic development efforts, while praising the Sanwo-Olu government for what he described as its transformation of Lagos and its economy.

“These also require continuity. So, I want everyone of us to participate in the prayer for continuity,” he said.

Beyond Politics, a Call for Unity

For Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, Director-General of the PBAT/KOH Campaign Committee, the gathering underscored the role of faith in a political contest where strategy alone may not be enough.

“We are gathered here today to place this political journey in the hands of God. Strategy matters. Organisation matters, but prayer is the ultimate,” he said.

Obanikoro said the APC was seeking divine guidance, protection and wisdom as it prepared for the elections.

“Our prayer is simple: let God go before us. Let Him grant us the process that will lead to victory for our party,” he added.

*But beneath the prayers was another message*

With political parties already positioning themselves for the 2027 contest, Obanikoro warned APC members against allowing internal disagreements to weaken the party.

“This is not about individual ambition. We all belong to one political family. Internal squabbles must not be allowed to cause divisions,” he said.

He urged the party to present a united front, noting that opposition parties were watching its activities.

“We must be seen as one and be united to confront opposition parties in the interest of all,” he added.

*Prayer Meets Politics*

The Onikan gathering offered a familiar picture of Nigerian political culture, where faith and politics frequently intersect.

For the Lagos APC, the message from the stadium was clear: the road to 2027 would require more than candidates, structures and campaign strategies. It would require prayer, unity and hard work.

Obanikoro summed up the party’s immediate task in three words by saying “Let us pray. Let us work and let us remain united.”

As the APC prepares to take its campaign beyond the prayer ground and into the political arena, the party is hoping that the spiritual foundation laid at Onikan will translate into electoral success in 2027.