Enugu’s unfolding power shift is a realignment of political forces as the APC moves to consolidate control of Enugu State through Gov Mbah.
Insiders say that the All Progressives Congress (APC) wants to open the door for Governor Peter Mbah to become its de facto leader in the region. Yesterday’s forced exit of Minister Uche Nnaji is therefore widely seen as the opening gambit in this strategy.
Moving the pieces
At the Federal Capital, reports indicate Governor Mbah was granted a closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu in the Aso Villa yesterday. Mbah’s reported secret meeting coincided with former Minister Nnaji’s formal resignation to President Tinubu.
The minister’s letter of exit came amid explosive revelations of alleged certificate forgery levelled by media investigations. Presidential aides later confirmed that Tinubu accepted Nnaji’s resignation and expressed gratitude for his service.
Simultaneously, the APC National Working Committee yesterday reportedly dissolved the Enugu State Working Committee led by Ugochukwu Agballah. This move signals that the party’s internal resistance is being firmly dismantled.
Agballah was recently restrained by a state High Court from acting as APC state chairman, following petitions from within his own ranks. Though he received backing from former Party Chair Abdullahi Ganduje to hold on, yesterday’s dissolution suggests those loyalties have evaporated.
A secret pact?
Party insiders claim that Mbah struck a pact with APC nearly two months ago, and what the public is witnessing is the execution phase. This phase involves the removal of obstacles (Nnaji, Agballah) and the clearing of terrain for the governor’s potential entry to the APC.
According to sources within the APC Secretariat, caretaker committee names are awaiting final clearance from the presidency.
Enugu State has long been a PDP stronghold, with Mbah as candidate winning the 2023 governorship election with 44.9 per cent of the vote. But recent defections from LP, APGA, and PDP — hint at shifting allegiances. One notable example is Senator Kelvin Chukwu, the Senator representing the Governor’s Enugu East who crossed over from Labour to the APC.
In past years, Nnaji and Agballah had jointly campaigned to make APC viable in Enugu State, but their influence appears to be waning. In his resignation defence, Nnaji stated that his decision was “a personal choice — not an admission of guilt,” while decrying what he called a “sustained campaign of falsehood and malicious attacks.” However, University of Nigeria, Nsukka and NYSC authorities have publicly disowned the certificates he presented, intensifying pressure on him to exit.
Removing entrenched interests
Observers now interpret yesterday’s developments as the first phase of a high-stakes takeover: removing entrenched actors, installing loyalists, and positioning Mbah as the new political axis in Enugu. The timing — two years before the 2027 elections — underscores both ambition and urgency.
Whether this grand entry yields a stable APC foothold in the state depends on how well Mbah can consolidate support across the local party base and overcome lingering suspicion among PDP loyalists. For now, the message is clear: the pieces are being moved.
The key players & what comes next
Peter Mbah — Incoming Power Broker
Governor Peter Mbah, elected on the PDP platform, is reportedly at the center of a quiet but decisive deal with the APC. Party insiders say the pact was sealed two months ago under the supervision of key presidential aides. His anticipated defection is designed to give APC its first real foothold in Enugu, where PDP has dominated since 1999.
Uche Nnaji — The First Casualty
Until yesterday, Uche Nnaji served as Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology and was one of the strongest APC loyalists from Enugu. But certificate forgery allegations and his forced resignation have turned him into the first political casualty of the realignment. His exit removes a major obstacle to Mbah’s entry into the ruling party.
Ugochukwu Agballah — The Second Obstacle Falls
The former APC State Chairman was already under a court injunction barring him from parading himself as chairman. The National Working Committee’s decision to dissolve his executive committee yesterday effectively ends his reign. His removal was reportedly demanded by those plotting Mbah’s crossover to ensure a clean slate at the state level.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu — The Orchestrator-in-Chief
President Tinubu’s fingerprints are visible throughout the process. Sources claim he personally approved the roadmap for restructuring the APC in Enugu and has given full backing to the “Mbah project.” The governor’s closed-door meeting with the President on the day of Nnaji’s resignation underscores the high-level coordination behind the scenes.
The APC National Working Committee (NWC)
Led by acting Chairman Ali Bukar Dalori following Abdullahi Ganduje’s recent resignation, the NWC’s decision to dissolve the state exco and install a caretaker team is a critical tactical move — ensuring Enugu’s party structure is firmly in the hands of Abuja loyalists before Mbah’s formal defection.
What Happens Next?
Political watchers expect a mass defection rally in Enugu before the end of the year, where Mbah and his loyalists will be welcomed into the APC. The move will likely trigger a wave of political repositioning across the Southeast, as other governors and key figures recalibrate ahead of 2027.
Bottom Line
Enugu’s unfolding political drama is less about one resignation and more about a coordinated power shift. By neutralising internal opposition and wooing an incumbent governor, APC appears set on rewriting the state’s political map — with Peter Mbah as its new poster figure.
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Powerful exposition