The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, and the Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, Hope Uzodimma, have dismissed suggestions that the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, could threaten President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid by zoning its presidential ticket to the South.
They spoke in Abuja after a screening exercise at the APC national secretariat.
Uzodimma, who is also the Governor of Imo State, said the APC remained firmly positioned across the country and was not worried about the opposition’s zoning arrangement.
He argued that the ruling party’s political spread gave President Tinubu a strong advantage ahead of the January 2027 presidential election.
According to him, the APC currently has strong control in most states and remains the party to beat.
Uzodimma also questioned the structure and national presence of the NDC, saying the opposition party had not shown enough organisational capacity to pose a serious challenge to the APC.
Yilwatda also rejected claims that a southern presidential candidate from the NDC could weaken Tinubu’s expected support in the South.
He said the development showed division within the opposition rather than weakness in the APC.
The APC chairman said recent by-election results had shown that the opposition parties had not performed strongly in the field.
He also played down the reported defection of 17 federal lawmakers to the NDC, describing the number as insignificant when compared with the APC’s strength in the National Assembly and across local governments.
Yilwatda said the APC remained structurally stronger than its rivals, with governors, lawmakers and local government chairmen across the country.
The screening exercise also raised questions over the absence of some high-profile governors, including Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Yilwatda said the absent governors had valid reasons and would be screened whenever they were available.
He said governors were chief executives with state responsibilities and could appear before the screening committee at their convenience.
Uzodimma described his own screening as a routine party process, saying he had complied with the APC’s requirements and was satisfied with the exercise.
The screening featured several governorship aspirants from different states. The outcome of the exercise is expected to be released within 48 hours.
