Keyamo
When a government creates a whole Directorate for the sky, it is no longer planning to run an election. It is planning to dominate it.
On Sunday, October 25th, 2026, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu quietly showed his hand for 2027. In a press release signed by Tunde Moshood, Special Adviser on Media and Communications to the Aviation Minister, the President appointed the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, as Director of the Directorate of Air Mobilisation for the APC re-election campaign.
Working under him are not politicians, but technocrats who control the runway.
Mrs. Olubunmi Kuku, Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, is Deputy Director I. Engr. Farouk Ahmed Umar, Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, is Deputy Director II.
That combination has set tongues wagging in Abuja.
This is the first time in Nigeria’s political history that a presidential campaign has created a stand-alone directorate solely for air mobilisation.
Previous campaigns had logistics and transport committees. None had elevated air movement into a strategic directorate headed by a serving Aviation Minister and deputised by the two most powerful aviation agency heads.
And that is the message.
2027 will be won in the air
Nigeria is 923,769 square kilometres. Six geopolitical zones. 36 states and the FCT. In 2023, Tinubu, Atiku and Obi all criss-crossed the country in private jets and chartered helicopters. Campaigns were lost and won by who could do two states before noon and still make a rally in Kano by 4pm.
For 2027, Tinubu is institutionalising that advantage.
The new directorate will coordinate all air-movement requirements, travel arrangements for designated campaign officials, and effective planning for air transportation across the country, subject to aviation regulations and electoral laws.
In plain language: No more ad-hoc jet bookings. No more last-minute scramble for airport slots. It will be a military-style airlift operation for politics.
Why Keyamo, Kuku and Farouk? A masterstroke
The choice of Keyamo is not accidental. Since assuming office as Aviation Minister, Keyamo has been the face of Nigeria’s aviation reset – from tackling trapped funds of foreign airlines, to pushing Nigeria’s Cape Town Convention compliance score up, to the recent push to make Nigeria an African aviation hub. He knows every airline owner, every airport manager, every air traffic bottleneck.
But the real genius is in his deputies.
Olubunmi Kuku controls FAAN. FAAN controls all 26 federal airports – the terminals, the runways, the ground handling coordination. If you need a last-minute presidential landing in Kebbi at night, you need FAAN.
Farouk Ahmed Umar controls NAMA. NAMA controls the sky itself – air traffic control, navigation, safety, clearances. If you need to move 10 aircraft in one day across six zones without delays or airspace conflicts, you need NAMA.
Together, they give the campaign what no opposition has: institutional memory of Nigeria’s airspace, regulatory influence, and operational muscle.
A source in the aviation sector who did not want to be named said: “This is not just about jets. It is about slots, permits, night flight approvals, and safety compliance.
With Kuku and Farouk as deputies, the APC campaign can plan its air logistics like an airline planning its schedule. The opposition will be booking flights while APC will be owning the flight plan.”
The seriousness signal
Political watchers say the creation of this directorate signals three things about the Tinubu camp.
First, that the President is not leaving 2027 to chance. A year before INEC lifts the ban on campaigns, structures are already being staffed.
Second, that Tinubu is running on aviation as a scorecard. With airport concessions, new MRO ambitions and improved airline viability, Keyamo is arguably one of the most visible ministers. Putting him at the heart of mobilisation ties the campaign’s logistics to its achievements.
Third, that the APC has learnt from 2023. The campaign was often criticised for chaotic scheduling and flight delays that left crowds waiting for hours. This time, they want precision.
The press release was careful to add that the directorate’s activities will maintain a clear distinction between campaign operations and official government functions and comply strictly with aviation safety and electoral laws. That line is important – to preempt accusations of abuse of office.
But the political import is unmistakable.
Other aspirants are still holding strategy meetings. Tinubu has already assigned ministers to own the sky.
In Nigerian politics where time is votes and presence is power, he who controls the air, controls the campaign.
And with Keyamo in the cockpit and Kuku and Farouk as co-pilots, the APC just told everyone: We are ready for take-off for 2027.
