The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Nentawe Yilwatda, has said Governor Siminalayi Fubara was duly screened and cleared to participate in the party’s governorship primary in Rivers State before voluntarily withdrawing from the race.

Yilwatda dismissed allegations that the Rivers governor was pressured out of the contest, insisting that the decision to step down was entirely personal.

Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, the APC chairman stated that Fubara fulfilled all requirements for the primary by purchasing the party’s expression of interest and nomination forms and appearing before the screening committee.

According to him, the governor successfully passed the screening process and was expected to participate in the primary before later announcing his withdrawal.

“He bought the forms, came for screening, passed the screening, and we were waiting for the primaries before he decided to step down,” Yilwatda said.

The APC chairman also dismissed claims linking the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to developments surrounding the Rivers governorship contest.

He argued that Wike, being a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, had no influence over APC internal processes.

“Wike is not a member of our party,” he added.

Fubara had earlier announced his withdrawal from the APC governorship race, describing the decision as a sacrifice aimed at preserving peace and stability in Rivers State ahead of the 2027 elections.

The governor maintained that stepping aside should not be interpreted as an act of weakness or surrender, stressing that he remained committed to serving the people of the state until the end of his tenure.

He said his action was motivated by the need to promote unity and avoid further political tension in the state.

Meanwhile, Wike on Monday publicly reacted to Fubara’s withdrawal, mocking the governor’s decision while backing Kingsley Chinda as the preferred governorship candidate.

The former Rivers governor spoke during the inspection of projects in Abuja, where he also revealed details of an alleged political arrangement facilitated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to address the prolonged political crisis in Rivers State.

According to Wike, the understanding involved Fubara dropping his second-term ambition in return for efforts to halt impeachment moves against him in the Rivers State House of Assembly.

Wike also accused the governor of failing to demonstrate political maturity by initially purchasing nomination forms despite ongoing reconciliation efforts.

The development comes amid growing political realignments in Rivers State ahead of the 2027 general elections.