The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, has commenced a two-week vacation outside Nigeria as the ruling party intensifies preparations for the 2027 general elections.

Yilwatda’s vacation, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy, Abimbola Tooki, is intended to provide the APC chairman with an opportunity to rest, rejuvenate and re-strategise ahead of what the party considers a crucial electoral period.

The statement said the vacation followed an “exceptionally demanding and eventful first year” of Yilwatda’s tenure as national chairman, during which he has been involved in extensive party engagements, consultations, travels and strategic activities.

According to the statement, the APC chairman will use the period to “rest, retool and further sharpen his strategic thinking” ahead of the 2027 general elections, which it described as a defining moment for the party and the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Tinubu.

Yilwatda assumed leadership of the ruling party with the task of strengthening its internal structures and improving its electoral competitiveness ahead of the next general elections.

The APC said that since assuming office, the national chairman had worked with the National Working Committee (NWC), governors, members of the National Assembly, state party structures, elected officials, stakeholders and party members across the country.

The party also listed the successful organisation and conclusion of its National Convention, strengthening of internal party structures and the conduct of primary elections at various levels among the achievements recorded under Yilwatda’s leadership.

It said the developments had further consolidated the APC’s position as “Nigeria’s leading political party and one of Africa’s largest and most formidable political organisations.”

The national chairman’s absence from the country, however, will not affect the day-to-day administration of the party, according to the statement.

“The National Chairman’s temporary absence from the country does not in any way affect the operations or functioning of the party, as the National Working Committee continues to discharge its responsibilities in accordance with the party’s constitution and established procedures,” the statement said.

The APC explained that the vacation was not a disengagement from party activities but an opportunity for Yilwatda to step away briefly from the intensity of his daily responsibilities and reflect on the challenges and tasks ahead.

“Far from being a disengagement from party affairs, the vacation provides the National Chairman with an opportunity to step back briefly from the intensity of day-to-day activities, recharge and reflect on the enormous responsibilities ahead,” it said.

The statement added that Yilwatda would also use the period to reflect on the next phase of the party’s development and put finishing touches to plans for an upcoming National Working Committee retreat.

The proposed retreat is expected to provide an avenue for members of the NWC to review the party’s activities, identify emerging challenges and formulate strategies for the months leading to the 2027 elections.

According to the APC, the retreat will also seek to strengthen coordination among members of the NWC and improve the party’s preparedness for the “demanding electoral season ahead.”

The party described the chairman’s decision to take a break as “timely and necessary”, given the sustained level of political and organisational activities since he assumed office.

“Leadership, especially at the level of a national political party, requires not only constant engagement but also periods of reflection, strategic assessment and renewal,” the statement said.

Yilwatda is expected to return to Nigeria at the end of the two-week vacation and resume his official engagements.

The APC chairman’s vacation comes as political parties and political actors begin positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the ruling party expected to defend its control of the Federal Government while seeking to retain and expand its influence across the states and National Assembly.

The APC said Yilwatda remains fully committed to the party and its objectives, stressing that his temporary absence would not disrupt the party’s operations.

Christians, Muslims and traditional worshippers gathered in Lagos on Tuesday to pray for peaceful conduct of the 2027 general elections, as Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, and other All Progressives Congress, APC, leaders urged residents to shun violence before, during and after the polls.

The interdenominational prayer session, held at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos Island, was organised to seek divine direction, commit the electoral process to God and commence mobilisation for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu and the election of Hamzat as Lagos governor.

The gathering brought together party chieftains, religious leaders, monarchs, traditionalists and supporters, with the leaders stressing the importance of faith, unity and peaceful political engagement.

Speaking at the event, Sanwo-Olu stressed the need to place a spiritual foundation ahead of political strategy.

He noted that just as individuals pray before embarking on a daily journey, committing political exercises to God remains an indispensable precept of faith.

The governor expressed appreciation to the religious leaders, whom he referred to as “fathers of faith”, and the organisers for bringing together a large turnout.

Sanwo-Olu also shared a lighthearted moment about participating in the intense devotion, recounting how his arms felt weary during the recitation of 118 Hallelujahs.

However, he stressed that having fulfilled these religious obligations, the party now moves forward with the confidence and “full chest” required to engage voters actively across every administrative level.

Outlining the party’s electoral vision, Sanwo-Olu declared that while the APC relies heavily on prayer, members are acutely aware that “faith without work is dead.”

He stressed that the administration takes no stakeholder, voter or community for granted.

Consequently, the party plans an aggressive campaign strategy, promising to visit every nook and cranny of Lagos State, its local government areas and extend outreach throughout the South-West region to ensure comprehensive victory.

Sanwo-Olu outlined the party’s major targets as securing victory for Tinubu, retaining all APC senatorial and House of Representatives seats, and mobilising full support for Hamzat as the governorship candidate on a joint ticket with Damilola James-Sonayon.

He also advocated a violence-free and peaceful electoral exercise, pledging his personal availability to join the national presidential campaign train to ensure national efforts are vigorously sustained.

Reaffirming that Lagos State and Nigeria are grounded in faith, the governor prayed for a more united, virile nation.

Speaking at the prayer, Hamzat said the gathering was an opportunity for the party to commit its candidates and the electoral process to God.

He prayed for peaceful elections without clashes, accidents or loss of lives, while expressing confidence that God would grant the party victory.

Hamzat also expressed confidence in the success of APC candidates contesting the three senatorial seats, 24 House of Representatives seats and 40 Lagos State House of Assembly seats.

Earlier, addressing the crowd of supporters, Director-General of the Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat, KOH, Campaign Council, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, said the prayer was necessary because human efforts alone could not determine the outcome of every circumstance.

Obanikoro urged party members to put the APC above personal ambitions, warning that internal disagreements must not be allowed to weaken the party ahead of the elections.

He called for dialogue, reconciliation, discipline and unity among candidates and supporters, urging them to campaign with respect and focus on their capacity to serve.

Obanikoro said the campaign organisation would take the APC message to every nook and cranny of Lagos State, its local governments and the wider South-West.

He expressed confidence in victory for the APC at the presidential, National Assembly and state elections, particularly projecting the emergence of Hamzat as Lagos State governor and Damilola Sonayon James as deputy governor.

Prominent personalities at the event included Iyiola Danmole, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly Adeyemi Ikuforiji, Pa Tajudeen Olusi, Senator Ganiu Solomon, Jumoke Okoya-Thomaa, Idiat Adebule, Wale Edun, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, Fouad Oki, members of the National Assembly and Lagos State House of Assembly, members of Conference 57, religious bodies, monarchs and traditionalists.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Rivers State has reacted to the statement made by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, that the Vice Presidential candidate of ADC, Rotimi Amaechi, will be defeated by 12 noon on election-day, saying the powers to announce election results is vested on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not Wike.

The party also stated that no politician in the state can win the forthcoming 2027 elections by boasting and sugar-coating the masses with lies and vain promises.

Wike, had during a civic reception organized in his honour by the City Boy Movement at Omagwa, Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state on Saturday, boasted that the ADC would be roundly defeated before noon on the election day, despite the fact that its Vice Presidential candidate is from the area.

The ADC in a statement on Tuesday in Port Harcourt, the state capital, by the state chairman, Dr. Chukwudi Dimkpa, said Wike’s boast is revealing.

Dimkpa described Wike’s conduct at Omagwa on Saturday, as a political rascality taken too far, calling on the people of Rivers state not to be intimidated by anybody but be prepared to make the right choice in 2027 by electing a credible leader that would add value to their lives.

He said, “Elections are not won by boasts, intimidation or political strongmen announcing results in advance. Rivers people will vote, the votes will be counted, and INEC, not Wike will declare the winner.

“On a day when Rotimi Amaechi was burying his mother and people from across Nigeria were travelling to Ubima to commiserate with the family, Wike and the Chairman of Ikwerre Local Government Area (Charles Wobodo) chose that same route and occasion for a political reception, obstructing part of the road, creating unnecessary traffic and then turning the event into a platform for attacking and taunting a man who was mourning his mother. It was insensitive, provocative and embarrassing.”

The ADC chairman, also stated there is always a time for politics and there is a time for humanity, saying that “if Wike could not suspend his political obsession with Amaechi even for the few hours in which the man was laying his mother to rest, then Rivers people should ask themselves who really is consumed by this rivalry.

“We refused to dignify the provocation with a response that day (Saturday) because our attention was on giving Mama (Dame Ezinne Amaechi) a befitting burial. But Wike should understand that Rivers State belongs to all of us. Nobody owns the people, nobody owns their votes, and certainly, nobody can declare an election result by 12 noon.”

Wike had told his supporters at the reception that all candidates chosen by the Rainbow Coalition would win the elections next year.