APC endorses Nentawe Yilwatda as national chairman

Nentawe Yilwatda, minister of humanitarian affairs and poverty reduction, has been named the new national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Yilwatda emerged as a consensus candidate during a late-night meeting between President Bola Tinubu and APC governors — a move later ratified by the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC).

The appointment signals a strategic shift as the APC moves to consolidate internal unity ahead of off-cycle governorship elections in Osun and Anambra.

Yilwatda, a former governorship candidate in Plateau and a respected academic, is seen within party ranks as a calm hand with policy depth and mass appeal.

He replaces Abdullahi Ganduje, who officially stepped down on June 27.

Hope Uzodinma, governor of Imo, moved the motion for Yilwatda’s appointment, and it was seconded by Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house of representatives.

Party leaders described his emergence as both symbolic and pragmatic — a bid to stabilise the APC and strengthen its national presence.

Yilwatda is expected to bring a quieter but more strategic approach to the party’s leadership as it prepares for key electoral contests and internal reforms.