Youths in Kaduna State have confronted Senator Abdulaziz Yari, director general of President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 campaign, with repeated chants of “Bamayi,” a Hausa expression meaning “We do not want.”
Videos circulating on social media show a large crowd of men wearing traditional caps and robes gathered around a black vehicle outside a building. The youths can be seen waving their hands and chanting together as they surround the area.
Other frames from the same video show two older men seated indoors, dressed in light green and light blue robes with matching caps. Their hands are raised as they appear to engage with people inside the building.
Nigerians described the outdoor gathering as the moment Yari arrived in Kaduna and faced a hostile reception. Some said the confrontation nearly became physical before the situation calmed.
The videos have spread rapidly among accounts focused on northern Nigerian politics as political activity begins to build ahead of the 2027 general election.
Yari, a former governor of Zamfara State and serving senator, is leading the All Progressives Congress campaign effort for Tinubu’s expected bid for a second term. In recent weeks, he has visited northern states and held meetings with religious leaders, political figures and other influential stakeholders as part of efforts to strengthen support for the president.
The Kaduna incident comes only days after Yari called on northern leaders to support Tinubu in completing eight years in office, arguing that power could return to the North in 2031.
His position has generated debate among northern political circles, particularly as different groups begin positioning themselves ahead of the next presidential election.
The reaction in Kaduna has also been linked online to wider concerns over economic hardship and insecurity. Critics of the ruling party have presented the chants as a sign that some sections of the North are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the Tinubu administration.
As of the latest reports, there has been no official statement from Yari’s team or the Kaduna State Government directly addressing the specific gathering shown in the videos.
The footage continues to circulate as political groups across the country closely watch public reactions to early campaign visits, particularly in northern states where economic conditions, security concerns and the question of political power rotation are expected to play major roles in the 2027 election.
