APC Zamfara E-Registration: Crisis Looms As House Member Drags Matawalle Before NWC
Member, House of Representatives, Aminu Sani Jaji has lodged a report against former Governor of the State and Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, before the All Progressives Congress, APC, National Working Committee, NWC, over the on-going e-registration excercise, nation wide.
Jaji, representing Kaura-Namoda/Birnin Magaji constituency, brought his case before the Party National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Goshwen Yilwatda, at the National Secretariat Abuja on Wednesday, warning of an impending crisis that could derail the APC’s prospects in the 2027 general elections.
The House member, while meeting with the National Chairman, complained of deliberate exclusion during the nation-wide membership e-registration exercise, which he said, was orchestrated by Matawalle and his allies to undermine party cohesion.
Jaji, a seasoned politician and vocal advocate for grassroots empowerment, described the situation as a “calculated attempt to ‘undermine unity of the APC,’ drawing parallels to the internal sabotage that led to the collapse of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the State, in 2015.”
Speaking with journalists, Jaji said: “Someone is working to undermine unity of the APC, towards the 2027 general election, not only in the State but also, at the Federal level,” emphasizing that, “such actions could not be tolerated,” urging the national leadership to intervene swiftly to prevent a repeat of historical party implosions.
The APC’s e-registration drive, launched on January 5, 2026, represents a pivotal effort by the ruling party to modernize its membership database, enhance transparency, bolster its organizational strength ahead of the 2027 and future elections in the country.
However, the excercise has not been without hitches. In several States, including Zamfara, reports of exclusions, and irregularities surfaced, prompting petitions and calls for intervention.
The exercise’s emphasis on inclusivity has ironically, exposed underlying factional rivalries, particularly in opposition-controlled States’ like Zamfara, where the APC lost the Governorship to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in 2023, but retained significant grassroots support.
“They stopped the Organising Secretary of the State from participating in the process with some people, denied membership registration. These actions are not mere administrative oversights but part of broader scheme to marginalize certain factions within the Party in the State.”
When asked about Party leadership in Zamfara State, he noted that by tradition, the immediate past Governor, referring to Matawalle, who served from 2019 to 2023 before becoming Minister of State for Defence, should assume that role.
However, he lamented the absence of effective leadership, saying, “There is no leader who can say that I am the leader of the party, and that is why we are having issues.”
He said internal forces, targeted his exclusion in the excercise, due to his political aspirations, which he said threatened those unwilling to account for their stewardship amid ongoing insecurity and economic hardships in the State.
“If some people say that they don’t want you to be registered, that means, they know that you are better than them politically or otherwise, because they know that your aspirations would always be injurious to their negative mind-set in the State,” he stated.
He commended the Party National Chairman, Prof Yilwatda describing him “a magnanimous Chairman, committed to inclusivity,” noting that, “the Chairman’s excitement at the meeting and immediate action, reaffirmed hope among APC members in Zamfara State and beyond.”
A former Local Government Chairman and APC House Member since 2015, Jaji positioned himself as a unifier, drawing on his background in philanthropy and security advocacy.
He warned that if the looming crisis is not resolved urgently, the APC risks losing the State, which remains an APC territory, and one of Pesident Tinubu’s strong hold in the 2027 election.
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