National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nentawe Yilwatda, has described the party’s ongoing nationwide primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections as the most competitive in Nigeria’s political history.
Yilwatda stated this on Wednesday after briefing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at his Ikoyi residence in Lagos on the progress of the primaries and the party’s preparations for the 2027 elections.
According to him, the large number of aspirants contesting for elective positions across the country reflects the APC’s growing acceptance among Nigerians.
“You can see how competitive our party has turned out to be. We have a few positions and thousands of people contesting across the country. It is the most competitive ever in the history of Nigeria,” he said.
The APC chairman noted that the level of participation showed that the ruling party had expanded its reach across communities nationwide.
“It shows how APC has penetrated all communities in Nigeria and how every facet of the country wants to be involved in the APC,” he added.
Yilwatda commended party members and aspirants for what he described as a peaceful and disciplined exercise with minimal complaints.
He also revealed that President Tinubu expressed satisfaction with the logistics deployed for the nationwide direct primaries and the relatively low level of violence recorded so far.
“This is the first time we are deploying nationwide direct primaries almost like a general election in terms of logistics. The President is impressed with the organisation and the reduced incidents across the country,” he stated.
The APC chairman explained that the party’s guidelines on consensus and direct primaries had been strictly followed in all states.
“Where consensus does not work, we go for direct primaries, and that is what is happening across the states,” he said.
He added that the party had put internal conflict resolution mechanisms in place to address grievances that may arise after the primaries.
“We are going to have some aggrieved members after the primaries, but we have conflict resolution committees to ensure early reconciliation ahead of the 2027 elections,” Yilwatda stated.
The APC primaries, which began on May 15, are expected to produce candidates for various elective positions ahead of the 2027 general elections.
