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All Progressives Congress (APC) governors reflected deeply on the country’s socio-economic trajectory before reaffirming their unflinching commitment to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

During a two-day strategic regional meeting in Benin City, the capital of Edo State, organized by Senator Monday Okpebholo, the governor of Edo State, the Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) reportedly declared that the APC is still Nigeria’s most institutionally coherent political platform, with unparalleled records of reform, electoral success, and national unity.
On Saturday, June 28, 2025, the PGF urged all Nigerians, domestically and internationally, to support Tinubu and the APC as the country progresses toward a more secure, inclusive, and dynamic future in a statement delivered to Governor Okpebholo by the Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua.

The Forum recognized that Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the party’s National Chairman, resigned in accordance with the party’s ongoing development.

In addition to reaffirming its strong commitment to a united, just, and prosperous Nigeria, the PGF promised to cooperate in order to implement radical reforms, bolster institutional trust, and quicken socioeconomic development in all geopolitical zones.

In order to propel Nigeria’s development from the ground up, governors decided to stick to APC principles while utilizing innovation, technology, and intergovernmental cooperation.

Greetings from Governor Eno
In a formal welcome to the ruling party, the PGF said that Umo Eno, the governor of Akwa Ibom, and his supporters’ choice to join the APC shows a growing national consensus on the transformative policies being carried out by President Tinubu’s administration.

President Tinubu and his team received congratulations from the PGF, which also praised the broad support for his programs in every State under the Forum’s leadership.

Tinubu’s Changes
A thorough evaluation of the country’s political, social, security, and economic developments was also completed by the Forum’s members.

In particular, the governors were pleased that budgetary reform, food security, energy transition, infrastructure modernization, and social sector revitalization were given priority. They also expressed pleasure with the enhanced coordination between federal and state authorities.

In accordance with constitutional federalism, they promised to stay in line with national goals.
In addition to expressing support for a strategy shift towards social fairness and inclusive prosperity, the Forum acknowledged the success of macroeconomic stabilization programs such the elimination of fuel subsidies, unification of currency rates, and debt rationalization.

Although economic data indicate that the economy is recovering, the governors emphasized that more investments in MSMEs, food security, job creation, poverty eradication, and social safety nets are necessary to further democratize growth.

Protection
Regarding security and national stability, the Forum praised security organizations and continuous initiatives to protect national sovereignty and combat crime.

The governors called for increased funding for surveillance infrastructure and frontline staff welfare, and they reiterated their support for grassroots intelligence systems, community policing, and interagency coordination.

In addition to expressing sympathy to families impacted by insecurity, especially in Benue and Niger states, the PGF praised recent efforts and trips to Benue State and reaffirmed its shared commitment to supporting the President’s national security architecture.

With a focus on the necessity of revitalized grassroots governance, the statement also emphasized the critical responsibilities that community structures and local government play in service delivery and democratic participation.

Following the press conference, Kano State’s esteemed national leader Aminu Dantata passed away, according to Governor Uzodimma. A minute of silence was called in his honor.

Even as efforts to reposition the party ahead of the general elections in 2027 continue, Bukola Saraki, the chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, or PDP, Reconciliation Committee, says additional defections from the party are likely to occur.

This was stated by the former Senate President on Friday during his appearance on Arise TV’s “Prime Time” show.

Saraki also denounced the ongoing conflict over who should be the National Secretary.
There’s a chance that PDP will have one or two more defections, so we should be ready for that. The worst of the PDP’s defections have not yet occurred. He predicted that one or two governors and possibly a few senators would defect.

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He argued that the crisis’s timing was advantageous, emphasizing that it allows the PDP time to recuperate and rebuild before the election season fully starts.

“This occurring early in the PDP is advantageous to some of us. We’re fortunate that this isn’t occurring because, say, in late 2026, we wouldn’t have even had time to recuperate and reorganize,” he stated.

According to the former governor of Kwara State, the PDP is still powerful at the state and local levels despite the national turmoil.
Saraki warned that the stakes went beyond party survival, but he was hopeful that the party was already setting the stage for the 2027 elections.

Following the abrupt departure of Abdullahi Ganduje as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, a close friend of Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Buba Galadima, has claimed that there is more to the political realignment than first appears.
Galadima stated in an interview with the Saturday Punch that although he was not formally aware of Kwankwaso’s intentions to defect to the APC, he was aware of a high-level meeting that purportedly sealed Ganduje’s and maybe Vice President Kashim Shettima’s destiny.
“I don’t know about the defection plan,” Galadima stated. But I’m aware that Ganduje and Kwankwaso are dealing with personal problems. I am,

equally conscious that three days ago, the presidency and APC stakeholders met and decided that Ganduje and Shettima should be sacrificed in order to elect a new group of people to the party and government.

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Since Shettima has so far kept a low profile in the face of recent party reorganizations, the accusation has further muddled the political landscape ahead of 2027.

Ladipo Johnson, the spokesperson for the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), refused to provide a firm response when Saturday Punch contacted the party for comment.

Johnson remarked, “I am not aware of such a move, and I cannot speak further on it at this time.”

The NNPP’s 2023 presidential candidate, Kwankwaso, has not yet publicly confirmed or refuted the rumor of defection.

Mark Jacob, a former PDP national legal adviser, has stated that while Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and Sim Fubara, the suspended governor of Rivers State, may have shown signs of reconciliation following their meeting with President Bola Tinubu, it is anti-democratic to suspend elected officials.
According to reports, late Thursday, Tinubu met at the Presidential Villa in Abuja with suspended members of the Rivers Assembly, Fubara, and Wike.
Three months after a contentious political crisis in the oil-producing state, Tinubu suspended Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and members of the Rivers Assembly. This is when the meeting took place.

Following the meeting, the suspended legislators, together with Wike and Fubara, were all grinning broadly.

They have reached an agreement to “work together with the governor, and the governor has also agreed to work with all of us,” Wike told reporters after they had settled their disputes.
He went on to say, “We belong to the same political family. Yes, we all have disagreements like everyone else, but you also have time to work them out, and that was finally resolved today…” As agreed upon, we have come to report this to Mr. President.

But in an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Friday, the former PDP legal adviser said that the reconciliation does not negate the reality that there was an aberration in Rivers State.

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Furthermore, Jacob said he would not be shocked if Fubara joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), citing recent defections to the party.

“I will not be surprised if Siminalayi agrees if they offer him a carrot and tell him to come over to APC so that he can reclaim his seat,” he stated, adding that it is all about me. How can I benefit?

Even if they are grinning and shaking their hands, River State is still subject to illegality, which is an anomaly that shouldn’t have occurred in the first place.

For me, it’s still drama, and we’ll have to wait a few days to see what happens, but it’s awful that it happened at all.

It should never be possible for a democratically elected president to subvert democracy. It shouldn’t occur, especially in Nigeria.

On the Nigerian Senate floor, Senator Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa West) boldly criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for prioritizing political ambition over national development, pointing to the capital element of the 2024 budget’s implementation delays.

While the federal government has fully disbursed the recurring expenditures intended for salaries and administrative operations, Senator Dickson voiced worry during Tuesday’s plenary session that monies for major projects have not been released.

“Simply put, the government has grounded,” he said. “Government contractors who have completed work are still not being paid. People have yet to reap the rewards of the budget that we all labored so hard to pass.

The senator bemoaned the fact that the national budget’s development component, which has a direct impact on service delivery and infrastructure, has not been altered. According to him, many MPs were aware of the mounting annoyance, citing recent reports of rallies by irate contractors.

The Senate Committee on Appropriations Chairman, Senator Solomon Adeola (Ogun West), sponsored the resolution on which Dickson spoke during debates. By passing the motion, the 2024 capital budget’s execution date was extended to December 31, 2025.

Dickson attacked the lack of a convincing justification for the postponed budget rollout even though he supported the proposal. Before the general elections in 2027, he said, the administration might be getting sidetracked from its primary governing duties by an overemphasis on political maneuvers and defections.

“Perhaps there is an excessive amount of focus on politics and 2027,” he stated. Perhaps too much focus is being placed on apprehending defectors, and nobody is considering the wider situation.

Notwithstanding the fact that income has increased since gasoline subsidies were eliminated, he cautioned that both the legislative and executive branches are failing to fulfill their constitutional obligations.

The problem does not lie in the availability of funds. More money is going to state and local governments than in the past. What is causing the delay, then?

Dickson demanded that a joint investigation be conducted by the Senate Committees on Appropriation and Finance, and that the results be presented within a week.

We require clarification. These committees ought to conduct an investigation and submit their findings to the Senate in order to prevent a recurrence of this circumstance.

Concerns about the governance priorities of the Tinubu administration and the practical effects of postponed infrastructure expenditure on both citizens and contractors are clearly evident in the senator’s remarks.