By Abdul Lauya
In a decisive political reset, the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday appointed 56-year-old Prof. Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda as its new National Chairman and simultaneously extended the tenure of its executive committees at all levels, national, state, local government, and ward.
Yilwatda, a Plateau-born engineer and current Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, succeeds Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje following months of internal agitation and strategic consultations.
His emergence was confirmed at a meeting of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The NEC also used the occasion to extend the tenure of existing party structures, a move party leaders described as essential to maintaining cohesion and averting disruptions ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“These decisions reflect the party’s commitment to stability and disciplined transition,” a senior APC official told Eye Reporters. “We are aligning structures with strategic timelines.”
Yilwatda’s elevation marks the return of a technocrat to the party’s topmost office, with some observers reading it as President Tinubu’s tilt toward rebranding APC’s image through younger, reform-minded figures.
Yilwatda, a former INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner and Gubernatorial candidate in Plateau State, brings a data-driven reputation to the helm at a time the party faces growing calls for reform.
However, the extension of the executive committees’ tenure has drawn mixed reactions. While proponents argue it prevents power vacuums and court-imposed leadership crises, internal critics, particularly among emerging state-level power blocs, see it as a stalling tactic that freezes out grassroots ambitions.
Party insiders hint that the dual decision, to install Yilwatda and freeze structural changes, is part of a broader containment strategy to manage simmering rivalries before the 2027 primaries begin in earnest.
Analysts say the moves signal a calculated balancing act: consolidating control from the top while delaying restive ambitions from below. Whether this delicate maneuvering yields party unity or reignites factional friction remains to be seen.
For now, the APC has closed ranks, at least on paper.
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