A FRESH political storm is brewing within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State following conflicting positions over who truly controls the party’s structure ahead of the 2027 general elections, pitting the party’s national leadership against influential grassroots actors loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
News Point Nigeria reports that the controversy erupted days after Nentawe Yilwatda, National Chairman of the APC, publicly declared Governor Siminalayi Fubara as the leader of the party in Rivers State, a position that has been openly rejected by key APC executives at the local level who insist they will only take political directives from Wike.
Speaking on Hard Copy, a political programme on Channels Television, Yilwatda affirmed that the APC accords sitting governors the privilege of leading the party at the state level, stressing that such leadership must be exercised with inclusiveness.
“Yes,” Yilwatda said when asked directly whether Fubara is the APC leader in Rivers State. “But he will need to coordinate every other person in the state,” the APC chairman added.
According to him, leadership at the state level does not translate into political exclusion, warning governors against disenfranchising party stakeholders.
“You being the leader doesn’t mean that you now disenfranchise people who are within the state, so we give that room for inclusion,” he stated.
Yilwatda further clarified that his role as national chairman was to coordinate party affairs, not impose leadership or candidates on states.
On the 2027 governorship race, the APC chairman stressed that party primaries remain the sole determinant of candidates.
“I’m not the person to choose people in the primary election; everybody undergoes primary election,” he said.
“If Siminalayi emerges as the candidate of APC in Rivers State, I’ll stand by him. But if any other person emerges, I’ll go with him,” Yilwatda added, emphasizing that the party’s loyalty lies with its democratic process, not personalities.
However, Yilwatda’s position appears to have little traction among grassroots party leaders in Rivers.
In a sharp rebuttal, the APC in Ahoada West Local Government Area declared that it would follow only the political directives of Nyesom Wike ahead of the 2027 elections, effectively rejecting Governor Fubara’s leadership of the party.
The declaration was made by Rejoice Otobo, Chairman of the APC in Ahoada West, during Wike’s “thank you” visit to the area on Sunday.
“We await instructions from you on the 2027 elections,” Otobo told Wike.
“Wherever you ask us to go, there we shall go; whatever you ask us to do is what we will do.
“All the people of this LGA have decided that where you want us to go is where we will all go,” he said.
The open endorsement underscored Wike’s enduring grip on the political machinery in Rivers, despite his exit from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) power bloc in the state and his ongoing rift with Governor Fubara.
In a rare show of cross-party solidarity, Ikechukwu Obuzor, Chairman of the PDP in Ahoada West, also pledged unwavering loyalty to Wike, crediting him for developmental strides in the area during his tenure as governor.
“Wherever you go, we will go,” Obuzor said. “Be rest assured that come 2027, Ahoada West will go with you in total.”
The Chairman of Ahoada West Local Government Council, Chita Eugene, described Wike as the “political field marshal of the South-South,” praising him for attracting critical infrastructure and political relevance to Rivers State.
Eugene said the visit was both an appreciation tour and a celebration of effective leadership.
Similarly, Rep. Victor Obuzor, who represents Ahoada West/Ogba-Egbema/Ndoni Federal Constituency, said Wike deserved continued support, citing his record of transforming Rivers during his years as governor.
The Sheyi Tinubu Support Group, led by Chidi Amadi, also pledged support for Wike and reaffirmed its backing for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
Addressing supporters, Wike said his visit was to thank the people for their overwhelming support for him and President Tinubu during the 2023 elections.
He lamented what he described as a decline in Rivers’ political stature, blaming it on what he called bad governance.
“Rivers used to be respected for its strong political position on good governance across the country until bad governance happened,” Wike said.
The FCT minister insisted that restoring Rivers’ glory in Nigeria’s political landscape would require correcting what he termed the existing leadership error in the state.
“Already, Rivers is being respected because of what we are doing in FCT,” he said. “We need a leader we can be trusted to drive our dear state to glory and progress.”