The All Progressives Congress (APC) has appointed Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, as the new National Chairman of the party. The confirmation came during the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja on Wednesday.
Yilwatda, a native of Plateau State, was nominated by Governor Hope Uzodimma, chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, and the motion was seconded by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas.
His appointment signifies a strategic move by the APC to return the national chairmanship to the North Central region, in line with the party’s original zoning arrangement. He replaces Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the former Kano State governor, who recently stepped down.
Party insiders suggest that Yilwatda’s emergence is aimed at calming internal tensions over perceived religious imbalance in the leadership structure. With a Christian chairman now at the helm, the party appears to be addressing concerns raised over the dominance of a Muslim-Muslim ticket at the federal level, following the election of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Yilwatda is a known political ally of former Plateau Governor and current Senator, Simon Lalong. He assumed the Humanitarian Affairs portfolio after Lalong resigned from the federal cabinet to take his Senate seat, following a Court of Appeal ruling in his favor.
Before joining the federal executive council, Yilwatda was the APC’s governorship candidate in Plateau during the 2023 elections, although he was defeated by the PDP’s Caleb Mutfwang. He also played a key role in the presidential race as the Tinubu/Shettima campaign coordinator in Plateau State.
