President Bola Tinubu has ruled out automatic tickets for Senators and House of Representatives members seeking to return to the National Assembly in the 2027 general elections.
Tinubu, however, insisted that state governors retain decisive influence over candidate selection.
A competent source at the Senate made these revealations while speaking on condition of anonymity on Thursday.
Thefrontrank reports that Tinubu on Wednesday met with the leadership of the Senate at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, in an “emergency and strategic” engagement.
The delegation, led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, arrived at the State House shortly after the upper chamber adjourned plenary.
It was gathered that the meeting was triggered by resolutions reached behind closed doors by the Senate earlier in the day.
Bayo Onanuga, Presidential spokesperson confirmed the meeting in a post on X (formerly Twitter), but did not disclose the details.
Though details of the deliberations were not made public, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele said “far-reaching decisions” were taken during the meeting with President which he noted focused on “matters of urgent national importance.”
However, a competent source at the Senate said the lawmakers held the closed-door session with the President to press for assurances that sitting Senators would be guaranteed party tickets without facing internal contests.
“The meeting was to plead for automatic tickets for Senators but President Tinubu insisted that the governor of each state has the influence over candidates.
“They made a case for continuity and stability and argued for automatic tickets but the President was very clear in his response,” the source said.
According to the source, Tinubu emphasises the central role of governors in shaping party structures at the state level, including determining who emerges as candidates.
“He told them plainly that governors are the leaders of the party in their states and must have a say on who gets the ticket,” the source disclosed.
