In anticipation of the commencement of the 10th National Assembly, a collective known as Arewa Youths of Nigeria (AYON) in Abuja has appealed to President-elect Bola Tinubu to remain faithful to the North West region, which contributed 30 percent of the votes in the recently concluded presidential election.

The group, emphasizing that Bola Tinubu is not known for abandoning his supporters, expressed their surprise, disappointment, and shock upon learning from news reports that the President-Elect was endorsing a candidate from the South-South region for the position of Senate President, instead of prioritizing the North-west region which provided him with the highest number of votes in the election.

During a peaceful protest held in support of Senator Abdulaziz Yari's candidacy for Senate President, the Arewa Youths conveyed to the President-elect through the media that the North-west's support for him stemmed from their belief that he is a leader who acknowledges the principle that political loyalty should be reciprocated with political loyalty.

During a press conference, Dr. Tanko Abdullahi, the zonal coordinator of the group, expressed his views through a representative, Useni Abubakar, the President of Northern Youths Council. However, he advised the President-elect to be wary of sycophants who may misguide him. He emphasized that they do not perceive the President-elect as a leader who uses and discards people. Hence, they urged Senator Tinubu to ensure that Nigerians do not perceive him as someone who has exploited and disregarded the good people of North-west Nigeria.

Wouldn't supporting the South-South region, which provided only 799,957 votes, accounting for a mere 9% of the total votes, while neglecting the North-west region that contributed 2,651,927 votes, equivalent to over 30% of the votes, be considered political suicide for Senator Tinubu?

We have presented these figures deliberately to ensure that the President-elect is aware that those individuals attempting to deceive him do not have his best interests at heart.

As the North-west youth, we stand united with the Northern Students, Women, and Leaders who are advocating for the Senate President to come from the North West region. 

The placards carried by the Arewa Youths conveyed the following messages: "The North West urges President-elect Tinubu not to betray us," "The North West provided over 30% of the votes, while the South-South barely contributed 9%," and "The position of Senate President belongs to us."

They expressed their concerns about feeling betrayed if the President-elect chooses to support Godswill Akpabio over Abdulaziz Yari. The group outlined reasons why Akpabio should not be trusted for the position of Senate President, citing his previous betrayal of the PDP and predicting that he would similarly betray the APC due to his power-hungry nature.