The appointment of Zacch Adedeji as Deputy Director of Fundraising in the All Progressives Congress’ 2027 Presidential Campaign Council has raised eyebrows, particularly because he currently heads the Nigeria Revenue Service.
Former Senator Dino Melaye has already announced plans to challenge the appointment in court, arguing that Adedeji’s role as head of the country’s revenue agency could create a conflict of interest.
It is a question worth asking.
But there is another question that seems to be missing from the conversation:
ZACCHWhy can’t Zacch Adedeji do it?
Why should his appointment automatically be viewed through the lens of suspicion simply because he heads the country’s revenue service?
The concern about the separation between public office and partisan politics is understandable. But so is the need to look at the individual involved, his professional background and the record he has built over the years.
This is not a new political relationship
Adedeji did not suddenly become associated with the Tinubu administration because his name appeared on the campaign council list.
Before becoming Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, he served as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Revenue. Before his move to Abuja, he was Commissioner for Finance in Oyo State under the administration of the late Governor Abiola Ajimobi. He also served as Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Sugar Development Council.
His career has largely revolved around finance, revenue and public administration.
So, when the APC needed people for different parts of its campaign structure, including fundraising, choosing someone with a long background in finance and revenue administration was hardly an unusual decision.
The political affiliation is not a secret either.
Adedeji has worked closely with the current administration for years. His appointment to the campaign council is therefore not a sudden transformation from technocrat to politician. It is another political role for someone who has already been closely associated with the administration.
But what about his record?
This is where the conversation should go beyond the title he currently holds.
Adedeji is a first-class graduate of Management and Accounting from Obafemi Awolowo University. He went on to obtain further qualifications, including a master’s degree and a doctorate, and also had a career in the private sector before moving into public service.
His record includes work at Procter & Gamble, where he rose to a senior finance position, his time as Oyo State Commissioner for Finance, his leadership of the National Sugar Development Council and, later, his appointment as Special Adviser on Revenue to the President.
When he was appointed to head the Federal Inland Revenue Service in 2023, the Presidency described him as having had “meritorious service” as Oyo State Commissioner for Finance and as head of the National Sugar Development Council.
President Tinubu also publicly praised his leadership of the revenue agency in January 2026, citing reforms, automation, staff development and his role in meeting revenue targets.
These things do not make anyone beyond scrutiny.
But they are part of the picture.
And if the conversation is going to be about whether Zacch Adedeji should be trusted with responsibility, then his record should count too.
Integrity cannot be replaced with assumption
The easiest thing in politics is to assume the worst.
A public official joins a campaign structure and immediately the question becomes: What is he going to do with his office?
That question is fair.
But there is a difference between asking whether there could be a conflict of interest and concluding that a person will abuse his office.
Those are not the same thing.
So far, the controversy surrounding Adedeji’s appointment has centred on the possibility of a conflict between his public position and his campaign responsibility. Melaye has said he wants the courts to test that question.
That is his right.
But the existence of a question does not automatically amount to evidence of wrongdoing.
Adedeji should be held accountable if he crosses the line. If public resources are used for partisan purposes, if his official position is abused or if the law is breached, those actions should be dealt with.
But until then, there is also room to judge him on what he has actually done.
Why fundraising?
There is another part of the argument that deserves attention.
Fundraising requires financial knowledge, relationships, organisation and an understanding of how money is mobilised and accounted for.
Adedeji’s entire professional background is built around those areas.
He has worked in corporate finance. He has managed public finances. He has been involved in revenue administration at both state and federal levels.
That experience may be precisely why he was considered suitable for the position.
The fact that the role is political does not erase the skills he has acquired throughout his career.
Public office and political participation
Of course, the bigger question remains whether a serving head of a federal revenue agency should participate formally in a presidential campaign.
That is a legitimate debate.
But it should be a debate about rules and principles, not an assumption that Adedeji himself lacks integrity.
If existing public service rules prohibit the role, then those rules should be applied.
If they do not, then the argument should not be built around the assumption that a public officer will inevitably misuse his position.
There is also a difference between being politically involved and using government resources for political purposes.
The latter would be a serious breach.
The former, depending on the applicable rules, is a question of political participation.
Those distinctions matter.
So, what is the real issue?
Perhaps the real issue is not Zacch Adedeji’s competence.
It is not his experience either.
And it certainly should not be an assumption about his character.
The real issue is whether the law and public service rules permit someone in his current position to take up the role he has been given.
That is a question that can be answered with facts, regulations and, if necessary, a court ruling.
But while that question is being debated, it is worth remembering who Zacch Adedeji is.
He is an accountant who has spent much of his career dealing with finance and revenue. He has worked in the private sector, served as a state commissioner, headed a federal government agency and advised the President on revenue before becoming head of the country’s tax administration.
His supporters see a professional with the experience and discipline required for the job.
His critics see a public official whose political role needs closer scrutiny.
Both views can exist at the same time.
But criticism should not become condemnation before there is evidence of wrongdoing.
If Zacch Adedeji has the experience, the professional record and the confidence of his party to take on a fundraising role, then perhaps the better question is not “Why Zacch Adedeji?”
Perhaps it is simply:
Why can’t he do it?
Who Is Zacch Adedeji?
Dr. Zacch Adelabu Adedeji is a Nigerian accountant, tax administrator and public officer who currently serves as Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service.
Born on January 8, 1978, in Oyo State, Adedeji began his academic journey with a National Diploma in Accountancy from the Federal Polytechnic, Ede.
He proceeded to Obafemi Awolowo University, where he earned a first-class degree in Management and Accounting. He later obtained a master’s degree and a PhD in Accounting from the same university. He also attended the Harvard Kennedy School of Government for an executive course in economic development.
His professional career began in the private sector with Procter & Gamble, where he held senior finance positions, including Corporate Finance Manager for West Africa.
At 33, he was appointed Commissioner for Finance in Oyo State by the late Governor Abiola Ajimobi, a position he held from 2011 to 2015. He later became Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the National Sugar Development Council.
Adedeji subsequently served as Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Revenue before his appointment in September 2023 as Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
With the transition from FIRS to the Nigeria Revenue Service, he now heads the country’s central tax administration agency.
His career has largely been built around accounting, corporate finance, taxation, public revenue and fiscal policy — experience that is central to the argument over why he was selected for a fundraising role in the APC campaign council.
APC 2027 Presidential Campaign Council
The APC’s 2027 Presidential Campaign Council brings together senior party figures, serving governors, lawmakers, ministers, technocrats and other political stakeholders.
At the top of the structure is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who serves as Chairman.
Vice President Kashim Shettima and APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda serve as Vice Chairmen.
Senator Abdulaziz Yari is the Director-General, while Governor Hope Uzodimma is Secretary. Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Basiru serves as Deputy Secretary, with Hadiza Bala Usman as Assistant Secretary.
The campaign structure also includes the following:
Finance and Fundraising
- Governor Dapo Abiodun — Director, Fundraising
- Zacch Adedeji — Deputy Director, Fundraising
- Farouk Gumel — Deputy Director II, Fundraising
- Dr Jamila Bio Ibrahim — Secretary, Fundraising
- APC National Treasurer — Secretary II, Fundraising
- Governor Sheriff Oborevwori — Director, Finance/Treasurer
- Ahmed Usman Ododo — Deputy Director, Finance/Treasurer
- Abubakar Kabir Bichi — Deputy Director II, Finance/Treasurer
- Tanimu Yakubu — Secretary, Finance/Treasurer
Zonal Campaign Coordinators
- Senator Bassey Otu — South-South
- Ndubuisi Mbah — South-East
- Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu — South-West
- Governor Umar Bago — North-Central
- Senator Modu Sheriff — North-East
- Governor Uba Sani — North-West
The wider campaign structure also features prominent figures across election planning, mobilisation, legal affairs, media, strategic communication, creative-sector mobilisation, youth and women mobilisation, health, sports, diaspora affairs and other areas.
Among the notable names are Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, Governor Mai Mala Buni, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, James Abiodun Faleke, Shehu Dikko, Joseph Yobo, Ali Nuhu, Zack Orji, Betta Edu, Ayodele Olawande, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Ali Pate and Hannatu Musawa, among others.
The campaign’s legal team includes Muiz Banire, SAN, as Director, with Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, Ibrahim Shema, Worgu Boms and Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, SAN, among others, also listed within the legal structure.
The size and range of the campaign council underline the scale of the APC’s 2027 political operation.
And within that structure, Zacch Adedeji has been given a role that sits directly within one of the campaign’s most financially sensitive directorates.
That is why his appointment has attracted attention.
But it is also why his professional background matters.
The debate may continue over whether a serving revenue chief should participate in a political campaign. That question deserves an answer.
But so does the other question that has received far less attention:
If Zacch Adedeji’s experience is in finance, revenue and public administration, and there is no established evidence that he has abused his office, why should his participation automatically be treated as suspicious?
That, perhaps, is the real issue
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