By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
After a nationwide round of party primaries, the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday said that the exercise produced “the most competitive” contests in Nigeria’s history,
APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, stated this, while fielding questions from journalists after meeting with President Bola Tinubu in his Lagos residence.
He said that the party will move quickly to soothe post-primary grievances and keep the focus on winning in 2027.
Asked his assessment so far on the conduct of the primaries, he said: “The assessment is very simple. You can see how competitive our party has turned out to be. Just simple demand and supply. We have few positions and we have thousands of people who have come to vie for these positions across the country. The most competitive ever in the history of Nigeria.”
The chairman framed the intensity of the contests as proof of the APC’s nationwide penetration and popularity: “It shows how APC has penetrated all communities in Nigeria and how it has been accepted by Nigerians and how every facet of Nigeria wants to be a member of APC.
“All leaders, people that want to become leaders in Nigeria, they’ve seen APC as the first choice and I want to thank Nigerians for that support and acceptance of the party.”
He praised the conduct of supporters and the logistical rollout, saying the primaries were “near rancour-free, very organised, little complaints” and “near perfect,” a performance that reportedly impressed the president.
“The President was very impressed with the logistics we deployed across the country, the tactics we’ve used also. He has also been very impressed with the reduced number of incidents that we have across the country,” the chairman said.
Despite the upbeat assessment, he acknowledged that some disgruntlement had emerged where consensus arrangements broke down. “It’s usual for people to complain in election processes, but it’s near perfect,” he said.
On the party’s rules, he added: “Our guidelines on consensus are clear. Our guidelines on direct primaries are also clear. Where consensus doesn’t work, you go for direct primaries. You must sign off those consensus forms that you’ve stepped down. You agreed on a consensus candidate before the process takes place. That’s what we’re following in the guidelines.”
On handling inevitable fallout, the chairman emphasised APC’s established dispute-resolution infrastructure. “Definitely we’re going to have some aggrieved party members after this primary election. We have an internal conflict resolution mechanism that has prevailed over a period. We have the Presidential Conflict Resolution Committee. We have the Party Conflict Resolution Committee,” he said, stressing the party’s readiness to manage emotions and restore unity.
“We ensure that we have the early healing process so that we can work on the campaign process so that we can emerge victorious across the country in 2027,” he said, framing reconciliation as essential to the party’s electoral ambitions.
Asked what direct guidance President Tinubu gave, the chairman said the president urged improvement and commended the NWC’s execution.
“This time around, he’s just the same feeling, let’s improved on our processes. The moral backing, he has backed everything we’ve made to ensure that we enforce the party’s regulations to the letter,” the chairman said.
He thanked Nigerians and party supporters for their discipline and participation, and by reaffirming the APC’s intent to capitalise on the momentum the primaries generated.
“We’ve not had so much conflicts and crises across communities and at the world level, down to the election processes. He’s happy with what we’re doing. I want to also thank Mr. President for the backing he has given the National Working Committee to succeed,” he said.
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