Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, the APC national chairman, has pushed back against claims that Governor Siminalayi Fubara was forced out of the party's Rivers State governorship primary.
Fubara stands alone as the sole APC governor who quit the race despite being eligible for a second term. Daily Trust first reported this development.
Speaking on Channels Television's Politics Today, Yilwatda outlined Fubara's full participation in the party's nomination process. The governor purchased expression of interest forms, nomination documents, and appeared before the screening committee.
Yilwatda confirmed that Fubara cleared the screening stage without issues. He withdrew from the contest before voting commenced, the chairman said.
"He pulled out; he stepped down. It is personal to him," Yilwatda noted on the programme.
"He bought the forms, came for screening, passed the screening, and we were waiting for the primaries before he opted to step down."
Yilwatda also rejected any link between Nyesom Wike and Fubara's exit from the race. Wike isn't an APC member, he stressed.
"Wike is not in our party. He is in PDP," the APC chairman stated flatly.
Earlier, Fubara had announced his withdrawal citing the need for peace and stability in Rivers State ahead of 2027. The governor insisted his decision wasn't born of weakness or cowardice.
"Let it be clearly understood that I stepped aside not out of weakness, fear, or surrender, but out of conviction and sacrifice so that Rivers State may move forward in peace and unity," Fubara had declared.
Wike, however, told a different story when he spoke publicly on Monday about the political crisis in Rivers. The former governor mocked Fubara's withdrawal while backing Kingsley Chinda as the APC's preferred candidate.
Speaking during an inspection of Abuja infrastructure projects, Wike disclosed details of an alleged political arrangement brokered by President Bola Tinubu. The deal, according to him, saw Fubara abandon his second-term bid in exchange for halting impeachment proceedings against him.
"By collecting the form first, he didn't show signs of gentlemanship," Wike said of Fubara. "That was not expected of him."
Wike suggested that Tinubu had been intervening with the Rivers State House of Assembly to stop the impeachment moves. Those efforts may have paved the way for Fubara's exit, he implied.
Wike continues to wield enormous influence over Rivers politics. His ally, Sam Ejekwu, emerged as the PDP's gubernatorial candidate, strengthening Wike's grip on the state's political landscape.
Under his so-called rainbow coalition aligned with Tinubu, Wike occupies a commanding position. Analysts say his next moves will likely shape the trajectory of Rivers politics after 2027.
