APC cites strategy behind Fubara welcome delay
APC cites strategy behind Fubara welcome delay
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has explained why Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, is yet to be officially welcomed into the party following his defection.
Speaking on TVC on Sunday, APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, said the delay was deliberate and driven by political strategy, not questions around Fubara’s authority or standing within the party.
According to Yilwatda, the party is prioritising engagements in the northern part of the country ahead of Ramadan, noting that timing and regional sensitivities informed the decision.
“We have Kano we’re preparing for,” he said. “In politics, you must understand timing. Ramadan is approaching, and most of the people in the North are Muslims. We have communities that are sensitive to this period, so we decided to clear the northern states first before moving to the South, where Ramadan is not an issue.”
He stressed that the postponement should not be interpreted as a slight on the Rivers governor.
“These are purely strategic considerations,” Yilwatda added. “It has nothing to do with Siminalayi Fubara lacking authority.”
Reacting to suggestions that Fubara has struggled to assert himself as APC leader in Rivers State, the APC chairman dismissed the claims, demanding evidence of any internal discontent.
“I’m the national chairman. Who complained? Where is the petition?” he asked. “When nobody has complained and there’s no formal petition, the media should not invent one and then become the petitioner, the judge and the jailer at the same time.”
Yilwatda also responded to comments credited to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, about political actors in Rivers rallying around President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda.
He clarified that such groups were separate from the APC’s official party structures.
“Support groups are not party activities,” he said. “Are they operating under the office of the party chairman?”
Fubara’s defection comes against the backdrop of a prolonged political crisis in Rivers State following the breakdown of his relationship with his predecessor, Wike, after the 2023 power struggle.
The crisis, which at its peak led President Tinubu to declare a six-month state of emergency in the state, has continued to shape political alignments ahead of the 2027 elections.
Fubara formally defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the APC on December 9, 2025, a move widely seen as part of his re-election strategy and an effort to stabilise his political base.
However, Wike, who remains influential in Rivers politics despite not being a member of the APC, has publicly disputed claims that Fubara’s defection automatically makes him the party’s leader in the state, arguing that grassroots structures still matter.
The disagreement has further fuelled tensions, with rival factions within the APC and PDP navigating impeachment threats, negotiations and realignments as the 2027 race draws closer.
