…says defecting to APC, easiest thing
Siminalayi Fubara, Rivers State Governor has openly declared his alignment with the All Progressives Congress (APC), pledging the full political support of Rivers State for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and describing his move to the ruling party as both natural and long overdue.
Fubara made the declaration on Thursday during a visit to the APC national secretariat in Abuja, where he was received by Nentawe Yilwatda, the party’s National Chairman, represented by Ajibola Basiru, the National Secretary.
Fubara said, “I can’t belong to a house without first coming into the house and understanding how it is arranged.
Read also: Fubara receives APC membership card, promises support for Tinubu’s re-election in 2027
“I felt it would be for me to visit the National Secretariat today to familiarise myself with the members and the operations.
“This way, when I come here next time, it won’t feel as if I am a new person.”
Signalling a clear political shift, Fubara said his visit was to formally assure the party of his commitment and readiness to work for its growth, linking the APC’s fortunes directly to the success of President Tinubu.
“I am here this evening to assure you that I have come in, and we will work together to ensure that this party becomes greater than it is.
“The greatness we all desire from this party is the success of Mr. President. We cannot grow or expand if Mr. President is not succeeding,” he said.
He added that his administration was already delivering results in Rivers State, which, according to him, had translated into growing grassroots support.
“I can assure you that we are already showing evidence of success in my state through what we are delivering and the number of people affirming their support,” Fubara said.
The governor went further to commit Rivers State to Tinubu’s political project, saying lawmakers aligned with his administration were also on board.
“We are now standing with Mr. President,” he said.
“On behalf of the good people of Rivers State, my supportive members of the National Assembly, and members of the State Assembly who are with us, I can assure you that your new home is Rivers State.”
Using familial imagery, Fubara described the APC as his “father’s house” and said he would formally invite the party leadership to Rivers to complete the political realignment.
“I am now in my father’s house, but it will also be proper for the father to come to his son’s house, so that the people of Rivers State will know that this is truly a complete process,” he said, pledging the “total support of my government and the people of Rivers State.”
Responding on behalf of the APC leadership, Basiru said the party was delighted with Fubara’s decision, describing it as a major boost to the APC’s dominance in the South-South.
“As a party, we are very happy that you have decided to join because, with your orientation, you are progressive and true, and you complete the circle for us in the South-South region,” Basiru said.
“The geopolitical zone is the first that is completely APC.”
He said the South was critical to national political power, arguing that Fubara’s entry had dramatically strengthened the ruling party.
“If the strength of our party was at Power 50 before, it is now much better it has become Power 100,” he said.
Basiru also dismissed criticisms of the APC’s growing influence, insisting that political victories were not achieved on social media.
“Elections are not won on Twitter or in the pages of newspapers. Elections and politics are very serious business,” he said, adding that Tinubu’s leadership had positioned the party for victory in 2027.
“Our leader, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is not just a good administrator; he is a corporate leader and a politician. Coming fully to join him in the renewal agenda, as the day goes by, APC 2027 victory is assured,” he said.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Fubara said his move to the APC was less a defection than a formalisation of his long-held political beliefs.
“When you say a new member of the Progressives, that is correct, but I’ve always been a progressive at heart,” he said.
“Now that I am a member, I will ensure that I bring everybody together for more unity and progress of the party in the state. So nothing to worry about, you have a direction now.”
He described his transition as “one of the easiest things I’ve done in my life,” saying it was driven by gratitude to President Tinubu.
“My joining the Progressive Congress is to say thank you to Mr. President and to join hands with other progressives to develop my state and Nigeria at large,” Fubara said.
“It wasn’t a difficult decision; it was easy.”
Fubara also took a swipe at his former party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying he never felt fully integrated and bore the brunt of its internal crisis.
“If I have to be honest, was I really a member of the PDP? I wasn’t,” he said. “Whatever I suffered during the political crisis, 90 per cent of it was imposed on me by the party. I was just there… at the balcony, I wasn’t inside the house; I was outside.”
He said his entry into the APC would now provide leadership and direction for the party in Rivers State, setting the stage for unity and political consolidation ahead of future elections.
