Oba Ewuare II, Oba of Benin, has endorsed President Bola Tinubu’s bid for a second term, asking Nigerians to allow him to complete his “good works”.

The monarch spoke on Tuesday when the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign council (PCC) visited the Benin palace to seek his blessing and support ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

The delegation was led by Abdulaziz Yari, director-general of the campaign council, and included George Akume, secretary to the government of the federation (SGF); Aliyu Wamakko, former governor of Sokoto; Abdullahi Ganduje, former national chairman of the APC, among others.

Speaking during the visit, Yari conveyed Tinubu’s regards and appealed for the Benin monarch’s support ahead of the 2027 election.

The former governor of Zamfara listed the reduction in food prices, stability of the exchange rate, and construction of inter-regional roads among the achievements of the current administration.

In his response, the Oba of Benin thanked the president for the warm reception he received during his own visit to the State House in Abuja and welcomed the PCC’s decision to visit the Benin palace.

The monarch said the president deserves a second term in office due to his performance in his ongoing first term.

“For somebody who is doing well, it is our prayer that he gets a renewed mandate,” the monarch said, adding a Pidgin expression to underscore the point: “As e dey pain them, e dey sweet us.”

Referring to the Biblical passage in John 8:7, the Oba urged critics to let the president continue his work unimpeded.

“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone,” he said.

“If one is doing well, why not join hands with the president to do what he is doing well? Let President Tinubu finish the good work.”

While noting that not everyone would become Nigeria’s president, the monarch urged opposition parties to support Tinubu’s re-election bid.

Ayo Fayose, former governor of Ekiti State, says President Bola Tinubu will secure more than 12 million votes in the 2027 presidential election.

Fayose spoke during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, aired on Tuesday.

The former governor said Tinubu would defeat both Atiku Abubakar, candidate of the African Democratic Party (ADC), and Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in 2027, “even if they come together”.

“It’s a three-way horse; maybe I am not putting it right. Atiku is there, and Obi is there. Even if they come together, this man (Tinubu) will still defeat them. But let us say they don’t come together; too bad for them because this election will be balkanised,” Fayose said.

“South-west will come up with not less than six million differences; I’m telling you, between five to six million. Write it down. Other five million, who would vote for Obi or Atiku in Ekiti? Who would vote for them in Osun? Who would vote for them in Ondo? What is their structure?

“This politics is not a tea party. Asiwaju will have over 12 million votes. To rig the election now is very difficult. Very, very difficult.”

Fayose’s comment comes after the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign council said Tinubu would record a “sweeping victory” in the 2027 election.

Speaking during an interview on Arise TV on Monday, Ima Niboro, spokesperson of the APC campaign council, said the party’s growing membership and the performance of Tinubu’s administration have strengthened its chances of winning the presidential election.

Niboro, a former media adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan, said the APC has 12.8 million registered members, describing the figure as a formidable electoral base ahead of the polls.

He said the figure was significantly higher than the membership of major opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Labour Party and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).

Niboro also said Tinubu deserves a second term based on what he described as the performance of his administration since the president assumed office in 2023.

Iweh Pascal Odinaka, the Nigerian dancer popularly known as Poco Lee, will appear before the Snaresbrook Crown Court in the United Kingdom on February 8, 2027, for a plea hearing.

The date was fixed after his scheduled appearance on Tuesday could not proceed because the charge sheet was unavailable.

Poco Lee had been due in court on September 15 for a plea and trial preparation hearing on the charges against him.

He, however, did not enter a plea because the charge sheet was not available.

Although the dancer was not present, the courtroom was reportedly filled with Nigerians who came to observe the proceedings, with some forced to wait outside.

The court has now set February 8, 2027, for the plea hearing, while the trial is scheduled to begin on March 8, 2027. It had earlier confirmed that the dancer was granted bail on September 11.

Poco Lee faces charges of attempted rape, two counts of rape and two counts of assault by penetration. He was previously remanded in custody following his arrest in the UK over the allegations.

In a recent Instagram live session with social media personality VeryDarkMan, Poco Lee maintained that he did not commit the alleged sexual offences.

He also said music star Burna Boy would not have supported him if he were guilty.

“If I did what someone said I did, I would say I am suffering my sins. As I did not do anything, my mind is as pure as anything. No one would want to attach themselves to something like that. And for Burna Boy and Jago to stand for me,” he said.

“I am a jolly good fellow. Even when I did not do anything.”