The national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Nentawe Yilwatda, has declared Governor Siminalayi Fubara as the leader of the party in Rivers State.
Speaking on Channels Television’s ‘Hard Copy’ programme, Yilwatda explained that it is the practice of the APC to recognise serving governors as leaders of the party in their respective states. He, however, emphasised that Governor Fubara must work with other stakeholders to ensure inclusion and effective coordination within the party.
“Governor Fubara is the leader of the APC in Rivers State, but he would need to coordinate with every other person in the state,” Yilwatda said.
“In all the states, we have the state governors lead the parties in their respective states. In APC, we give them that privilege, but we also ask the governors to ensure inclusion — to coordinate and carry everyone along.”
Responding to questions of whether the party would support Fubara if he wants to run for a second term in office, the APC national chairman drew parallels with similar instances in other states, citing the example of Ekiti State, where the sitting governor had to go through the party’s primary process like any other aspirant before emerging as the flagbearer.
“We did primaries in Ekiti State and the governor contested with others before he emerged as the APC candidate. The same rule applies to every state — even Governor Fubara will have to go through the normal process if he seeks the ticket,” he noted.
“If we are discussing elections, we will not be discussing with Nyesom Wike. He is not a member of our party,” Yilwatda stated.
“We will be discussing with Siminalayi Fubara because he is a member of the All Progressives Congress right now.”
When asked whether Wike still influences APC politics in Rivers State, the party chairman dismissed the idea, insisting that his focus remains on APC members, not individuals outside the fold.
“I think we are overflogging what we don’t need to overflog,” he said.
“Wike is in PDP. Allow me to discuss members of my party, not people who are not members. I am chairman of the APC, not chairman of all political parties in Nigeria.”
Recall that following his defection to the APC, Governor Fubara declared himself as the ‘001 of APC’ in the state, however, Wike, in a veiled response on Monday, dismissed claims that Governor Fubara has become the leader of the APC in Rivers State, following the governor’s recent defection to the ruling party.
“There is nothing like ‘001’ in party politics,” Wike said. “You register in your ward, and your local government is in your ward. Everybody registers in his ward. You could be the first to register, but it does not mean that by becoming governor, you automatically become leader of the party.”