Fresh controversy has erupted within the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State following conflicting claims over the outcome of the party’s screening exercise for House of Assembly aspirants ahead of the 2027 elections.
The confusion began after reports emerged that 65 out of the 98 aspirants who purchased nomination forms for the APC primaries were allegedly disqualified by the screening committee.
The development reportedly affected mostly aspirants believed to be loyal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara, while politicians aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, were said to have been cleared.
Copies of the controversial screening report, reportedly signed by committee chairman Rt. Hon. Muraina Ajibola and three other members, were circulated by the APC Publicity Secretary in Rivers State, Chubike Ikenga.
However, the Secretary of the Screening Committee, Hon. Tanko Yamowa, swiftly disowned the report, describing it as fake, unauthorized and not approved by the party leadership.
“The attention of the party leadership has been drawn to the circulation of a purported list of cleared and uncleared aspirants for the Rivers State House of Assembly currently making rounds across various media platforms,” Yamowa said.
“We wish to categorically state that the said publication is false, unauthorized, and does not emanate from the appropriate party authorities.”
He noted that the screening exercise had only been concluded less than 24 hours earlier and insisted that no official list had been released by the party.
“As a responsible political party, we are guided by established procedures, rules, and timelines regarding the publication of screening results and related information,” he stated.
“Any official communication concerning the status of aspirants will be communicated through the appropriate channels in due course.”
Yamowa further urged party members and the public to ignore the circulated document.
“We therefore urge party faithful, aspirants, supporters, and the general public to disregard the purported list and treat it as the handiwork of mischief makers whose intention is to create confusion and unnecessary tension within the party,” he added.
“The party remains committed to transparency, fairness, and due process throughout the entire exercise.”
But responding to the denial, APC spokesman Chubike Ikenga maintained that the screening report was authentic and accused Yamowa of spreading misinformation.
“That is fake news; the report is out,” Ikenga said while defending the circulated document.
“If you read our statement, we said tomorrow is the day they can make the appeal to the appeal committee. They can approach the appeal committee tomorrow from the national to the state secretariat of the party to challenge their disqualification.”
He added that affected aspirants were free to formally contest their disqualification through the party’s internal mechanism.
“The correspondence has to go to the state secretary of the party, indicating their interest to appeal their lack of clearance or whatever it is,” he said.
The latest dispute is seen as another sign of the deepening political battle between Governor Fubara and his estranged political godfather, Wike, ahead of the 2027 elections.
Sources within the party claimed that forces loyal to the former governor were already positioning to weaken Fubara’s influence within the APC structure in the state.
Meanwhile, opposition parties, including the African Democratic Congress and the Nigeria Democratic Congress, are reportedly monitoring the crisis closely as they strategise for future political contests in the South-South region.
