The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has drafted dozens of Nollywood actors, Fuji musicians, and creative industry heavyweights into its Campaign Council ahead of the 2027 elections.
In a clear signal of how central entertainment and popular culture have become to modern political campaigning, the list sets up a dedicated Entertainment and Creative Economy Directorate to carry the party’s message to the grassroots.
Veteran actor Jide Kosoko headlines a star-studded list that also includes Fuji legends Wasiu Alabi Pasuma, Abass Akande Obesere, and Adewale Ayuba, alongside Nollywood favourites Toyin Abraham, Eniola Badmus, and Bimbo Akintola, names that carry considerable weight and cultural reach across Lagos and beyond.
Insightlinks gathered that the appointments were contained in the full campaign council list released by the Kadri Obafemi Hamzat Media Centre on Thursday, ahead of the council’s formal inauguration on Friday, September 18, at the APC Secretariat on ACME Road, Ikeja.
The decision to build an entire directorate around entertainment and the creative economy reflects a growing recognition within Nigerian politics that celebrities and cultural figures wield influence that traditional political structures often struggle to match.
Actors, musicians, and comedians command loyal followings that cut across age groups and social classes, and their voices whether through film, music, or social media can shape public sentiment in ways campaign posters and rally speeches rarely can.
In a state as culturally diverse and youth-driven as Lagos, mobilising figures with genuine grassroots popularity is seen as key to reaching demographics that conventional political messaging often misses.
It’s a strategy that also taps into the Yoruba film and Fuji music industries specifically two of the most commercially powerful and widely consumed entertainment sectors in southwestern Nigeria, with fan bases that span generations and social strata.
According to the list, broadcaster and public affairs figure Toke Benson-Awoyinka will serve as Director of the Entertainment and Creative Economy Directorate, with Jide Kosoko stepping in as Co-Director and Eniola Badmus taking on the role of Deputy Director. Akeem Alimi, better known by his stage name Ajala Jalingo, has been named Secretary, with Dare Olateju as Assistant Secretary, a leadership structure that blends seasoned industry veterans with figures who have direct grassroots reach.
The Yoruba movie industry is heavily represented on the broader membership list, with veteran actor Oga Bello (Adebayo Salami) joining Saheed Balogun, Bukky Wright, Fathia Balogun, Yinka Quadri, and Tayo Sobola, actors whose decades-long careers have made them household names across the region.
The Fuji music scene is equally well represented, with Pasuma, Obesere, and Ayuba joined by Sulaimon Alao Adekunle (Malaika), Akorede Babatunde Okunola (Osupa), and Temitope Adekunle (Small Doctor), artistes whose music regularly soundtracks social and political gatherings across Lagos and whose influence extends deep into working-class communities.
The Entertainment and Creative Economy Directorate is just one arm of the broader Lagos State Campaign Council, which is headed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu as Chairman, with Kadri Obafemi Hamzat serving as Deputy Chairman. Its creation alongside other specialised directorates suggests a campaign strategy built on reaching Lagosians through multiple channels, from professional to cultural and community-based rather than relying solely on conventional political outreach.
For the entertainers themselves, the appointments offer a formal platform to translate personal popularity into political mobilisation, lending their public profiles to a campaign that will be looking to consolidate APC’s long-standing hold on Lagos ahead of what is expected to be a fiercely contested 2027 election.