The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and some Nigerians have criticised the emergence of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Nentawe Yilwatda, as the new national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Naija News reports that the uproar follows Yilwatda’s previous role as a Resident Electoral Commissioner with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as opposition parties view the latest appointment as a strategic move by President Bola Tinubu to compromise the commission’s independence ahead of the 2027 general election.
Yilwatda emerged as the APC national chairman from the National Executive Committee meeting of the party held on Thursday, July 24, 2025, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, replacing the former national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, who resigned his appointment on June 27, 2025, due to health issues.
The Minister was appointed REC in July 2017 and posted to Benue State. During his four-year tenure in office, he participated in the conduct of elections in Benue, Anambra, Osun, Rivers, and Cross River states, before his resignation in 2022.
Yilwatda contested the 2023 Plateau State governorship election on the platform of the APC, initially secured victories at the election petitions tribunal and the Court of Appeal, but ultimately lost to the incumbent Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, at the Supreme Court.
Reacting to the appointment, a member of the National Executive Committee of the PDP, Diran Odeyemi, in an interview with Punch, said Yilwatda’s appointment had invariably brought to the fore the doubt about INEC’s neutrality in the elections to be held under his chairmanship.
He said, “This appointment has again exposed who Prof Yilwatda is. He has APC DNA, which raises serious concerns about his neutrality in his previous assignments, through which he got the new appointment as APC national chairman. This again raises the question of how truly independent INEC is.
“Let’s hope his contemporaries are not in charge of our elections in Nigeria, or can we rightly conclude that election results have been pronounced with the announcement of his name as their new chairman?”
However, the National Publicity Secretary of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Wale Egbeola-Martins, asserted that while the concerns raised about Yilwatda’s appointment are understandable, the party is more concerned about reforming the nation’s electoral laws.
He said, “While the concerns raised are understandable, the Young Progressives Party believes that the broader and more pressing issue lies in the urgent need to reform Nigeria’s electoral laws.
“The credibility of our democratic process cannot hinge solely on individuals or their past affiliations but must be built on strong, transparent, and enforceable electoral frameworks.
“Once our electoral laws are thoroughly reformed and institutionalised, fears of undue influence, whether real or perceived, will be significantly minimised.
“Strengthening legal safeguards around the electoral process is the surest way to inspire public confidence and ensure that elections truly reflect the will of the people, regardless of who occupies party leadership positions. For us, the focus should be on systemic integrity, not personalities.”
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