The spate and spread of defection (now called re-alignment for convenience) into the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is generating anxiety and discontent in the membership and state chapter of the party, leading to fear of impending catastrophic implosion in the party anytime soon.
This is because the take-over of the party’s leadership by defectee governors in their various states in line with the party’s principles have literally thrown the ambition of old members of the party under the bus and they are not happy for it.
In Plateau state, the home state of Professor Nentawe Goshewe Yilwatda, National Chairman of the party, the rejection and campaign against Governor Caleb Mutfwang joining the party had been fierce by forces within and outside the state chapter of the party.
Shittu Bamaiyi, Acting Publicity Secretary of the APC in the state on 1st December, 2025 issued a press release titled ‘’DEFECTION TO BE OR NOT TO BE?’’ describing the then defection plan by the governor as a search for political haven.
According to the statement, ‘’governance has been relegated to the, resources and energy misdirected at a wild goose chase, all at the expense of the ordinary Plateau man and woman. While a selected senior government functionary as well as fortune-seekers and PDP turn-coats have been forum shopping for the helmsman to politically survive beyond 2027’’.
The release further stated that, ’From 13th, 15th of last month (November, 2025) and now deferred to 10th December this year (2025), the government and its sheepish supporters are enveloped with the euphoria of receiving approval from ‘THE TOP’ to join the APC’.
The statement concluded and categorically stated that the party at state and national levels were unaware of the governor’s defection move at the time.
This was the scenario in many of the states. Perhaps, sensing the danger this portends, the national chairman has categorically emphasised that decampees into the party would not have automatic tickets, and no candidate would be favoured by the leadership of the party for party tickets for the 2027 elections.
However, while receiving Governor Caleb Mutfwang into the party on Tuesday 27th January, 2025, in Jos, the Plateau state capital, the national chairman in his address made a volte-face, unequivocally assuring the governor and the people of the state that he would do whatever was humanly possible to ensure the governor’s return to government house.
According to Nentawe, ‘’Come 2027, Governor Caleb Mutfwang, I can give you that assurance, I will return you back to government house. You’re going to win as governor of Plateau state; you’ll win overwhelmingly. I will stand by you, I’ll support you. I will ensure that I do everything it takes to bring you back to government house. We’ll do it’’.
While the governor in his response expressed delight and thanked the national chairman for making it very clear to all and sundry that there would be no vacancy in little Rayfield come 2027, effectively throwing other gubernatorial candidates hopefuls in a quandary.
Observers of the state’s politics are asking, what is the hope of those who suffered to build the party and aspirants who want to contest for elective positions be, and their fate in the party, now that the national chairman has vowed to return the new comer governor’s back to government house come 2027, or was it an indirect message passed across to those who want to contest for governorship position to move to another political party?
The question on the lips of stakeholders and party loyalists in the state is, if it was really Professor Nentawe that spoke at the reception.
Again, in Plateau State, it is a waiting game to see how it plays out, whether the governor’s entry into APC will not mar the party.
