The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has dismissed suggestions that opposition parties pose a serious challenge to the ruling party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Yilwatda spoke on Saturday in Maiduguri, Borno State, at the end of a three-day retreat involving members of the APC National Working Committee, elected members of the National Executive Committee and state chairmen of the party.
The APC chairman pointed to the party’s recent performance in legislative by-elections as evidence of its current electoral strength. He noted that the party won four of the five seats contested in the September 19 elections across Gombe, Kano, Delta and Bauchi states, with the remaining seat won by the Allied Peoples Movement.
Yilwatda also referred to the APC’s victories in previous electoral contests, arguing that the results demonstrated the party’s established structures across several parts of the country.
He specifically mentioned a recent election in Ganye Local Government Area of Adamawa State, which he described as an area associated with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. According to Yilwatda, the APC’s victory there was another indication of the party’s grassroots presence.
The APC chairman also dismissed concerns surrounding the emergence of opposition platforms such as the African Democratic Congress and the Nigeria Democratic Congress. He argued that recent political developments within opposition ranks did not amount to a direct challenge to the ruling party.
His position is consistent with earlier comments in which he described movements between opposition parties as a redistribution of political forces within the opposition rather than a development that directly affected the APC. In May, he said that defections from one opposition platform to another did not threaten the ruling party because the politicians involved were not leaving the APC.
However, opposition parties have continued to organise ahead of the 2027 elections. The NDC, for instance, has attracted prominent political figures and has positioned itself as another platform in the emerging opposition landscape. The political realignment has generated debate over how the various opposition groups could affect the contest.
Beyond the opposition, the APC retreat focused substantially on the ruling party’s internal organisation and preparedness for the forthcoming elections.
Yilwatda said the National Working Committee had reviewed the party’s structures from the national level down to state, local government, ward and polling-unit levels. He said the assessment gave the party what he described as a “clean bill of health” and showed that it was prepared for the 2027 elections.
The party leadership also resolved to strengthen reconciliation efforts at state, local government and ward levels to address internal disagreements. State chapters that had not established reconciliation committees were urged to do so.
According to Yilwatda, the APC will also intensify its engagement with Nigerians to communicate the policies and programmes of the President Bola Tinubu administration as political activities increase.
The party’s leadership further passed a vote of confidence in President Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima and candidates who emerged from its primary elections.
The Maiduguri meeting also considered the outcome of recent off-cycle and by-elections. Yilwatda said the leadership was satisfied with the party’s performance, citing victories in states where the APC had previously faced electoral challenges.
His comments come as political parties across Nigeria intensify preparations for the 2027 general elections. Opposition groups are pursuing alliances and grassroots structures, while the APC is working to consolidate its existing organisation and address internal differences.
Although Yilwatda expressed confidence in the APC’s position, the 2027 election remains ahead, and the eventual strength of the various political parties will depend on their organisation, candidates, alliances, campaigns and performance at the polls.
For now, the APC leadership is projecting confidence in its structures and recent electoral record, while opposition parties continue building their platforms ahead of the next general election.
