THE All Progressives Congress (APC), has named the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Nentawe Yilwatda, as its new national chairman.
Yilwatda emerged as the consensus nominee after a late night meeting between President Bola Tinubu and APC governors.
The decision is expected to be ratified at the National Executive Committee (NEC) scheduled for today, July 24, according to Premium Times.
The party’s former national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, stepped down from the top position on June 27, citing health concerns in his resignation letter.
His departure, however, came amid mounting pressure within the party, lingering court cases, and allegations of financial impropriety that dogged his tenure since he assumed office in August 2023.
The ICIR also reports that his tenure was fraught with controversies, suspensions, and litigations, as sources said that internal rifts within the party might have influenced his decision to step aside.
Following his sudden resignation, Ali Bukar Dalori from Borno State was directed to immediately assume the role of acting national chairman.
Dalori, hails from Borno, the same state as Vice President Kashim Shettima, who has recently been embroiled in controversy over speculation about his potential replacement as running mate in the 2027 election by the president.
Meanwhile, the new substantive APC chairman, a former commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Tinubu’s cabinet member, was brought into the Federal Executive Council in October 2024 to replace Betta Edu as Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction.
Yilwatda was also a former governorship candidate in Plateau State and technocrat with electoral experience.
His selection into Tinubu’s cabinet was part of a broader shake-up that included restructuring of ministries and the dismissal of key officials to refocus the administration on poverty alleviation and national development.
In renaming the ministry and emphasising poverty reduction, Tinubu had signaled his intention to align humanitarian efforts with economic reform and political consolidation.
By appointing a cabinet member to lead the ruling party, sources said the president could be tightening his grip on both the executive arm and the party structures.
It also comes at a time the APC is enjoying defections into its fold, and facing growing coalition of opposition parties, and questions about its future heading into the next election cycle.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M