By Joshua Tosin Ogunsakin 
The Minister of Transportation, Senator Saidu Alkali, has resigned from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet, the State House media office revealed on Tuesday evening.
The resignation comes just hours before the March 31, 2026, deadline set by the President for political appointees seeking elective offices to step down.
Alkali, who hails from Gombe State, announced his decision after meeting with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa on Tuesday evening.
The former minister is expected to contest for the Gombe State governorship seat in the 2027 general elections, seeking to succeed incumbent Governor Inuwa Yahaya, whose tenure ends in May 2027.
Yahaya was elected in 2019 and re-elected in 2023 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress.
His resignation follows a directive issued by President Tinubu through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on March 17, 2026, ordering all political appointees with elective ambitions to vacate their positions on or before March 31.
The circular, signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. George Akume, and issued by the Permanent Secretary (General Services Office), Dr Ibrahim Kana, stated that the directive was “pursuant to the provisions of Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, as well as the timetable issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission for party primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections.”
Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act 2026 requires political appointees, including ministers, advisers, and heads of government agencies, to resign their positions before they can participate in party primaries or be nominated for any elective office.
The provision is designed to prevent the use of public office and state resources to gain an unfair advantage during the electoral process.
The directive applies to ministers, ministers of state, special advisers to the President, senior special assistants, special assistants, personal assistants, directors-general, and chief executive officers of federal parastatals, commissions, agencies, and government-owned companies.
According to its timetable, the Independent National Electoral Commission scheduled party primaries between April 23 and May 30, 2026, with the submission of the names of candidates due by July 11 for presidential and National Assembly elections, and August 8 for governorship and state assembly contests.
Alkali, a former Senator, becomes the third cabinet member to tender his resignation in compliance with the president’s directive.
Prior to his appointment as Transportation Minister, Alkali represented Gombe Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly.