The APC national chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has pushed back on claims that Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara was forced out of the party’s governorship primary.
Fubara is the only APC governor who withdrew from the primaries despite being eligible for a second term. Yilwatda, speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, said Fubara “fully participated in the APC nomination process by purchasing the party’s expression of interest and nomination forms, appearing before the screening committee and securing clearance ahead of the primary election.”
According to Yilwatda, the governor later chose to withdraw on personal grounds before voting began. “He pulled out; he stepped down. It is personal to him. He bought the forms, came for screening, passed the screening, and we were waiting for the primaries before he opted to step down”, Yilwatda said.
Yilwatda also rejected suggestions that FCT Minister Nyesom Wike influenced the Rivers contest, stressing that Wike was not in the APC. “Wike is not in our party. He is in PDP,” he stated.
Fubara had earlier announced his withdrawal, calling it a sacrifice for peace, stability and unity ahead of 2027 and insisting it was not weakness. “Let it be clearly understood that I stepped aside from participating in the upcoming Rivers State governorship election not out of weakness, fear, or surrender, but out of conviction and sacrifice so that Rivers State may move forward in peace and unity,” he said.
Wike, meanwhile, publicly mocked Fubara’s withdrawal and backed Kingsley Chinda, revealing an alleged deal brokered by President Bola Tinubu to halt impeachment moves in exchange for Fubara abandoning a second term. “By collecting the form first, he didn’t show signs of gentlemanship. He didn’t show that sign, and that was not expected,” Wike said. “We thought that Mr President had been intervening severally and pleading with the legislature not to continue with impeachment.”
Wike’s influence remains strong after Sam Ejekwu emerged as the PDP candidate, and allies say he’s key to where Rivers politics swings after 2027.
