APC Moves to Counter Bala Mohammed’s Planned Defection to ADC

From Paul Orude Bauchi

Barely 24 hours after the Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, signaled his intention to defect to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) amid the lingering crisis in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), a fresh political twist has emerged.

In a dramatic development, the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Nentawe Yilwatda, arrived in Bauchi on Wednesday, accompanied by the Governor of Kano State, Abba Kabiru Yusuf, and other unidentified APC leaders.

The APC delegation paid a visit to Governor Bala Mohammed at the Government House, where both parties held a closed-door meeting that lasted for about two hours. 

Details of the discussion were not made public, but political observers believe it may not be unconnected with the governor’s earlier declaration to join the ADC.

This comes shortly after Governor Mohammed received a high-powered delegation from the ADC led by former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, on behalf of the party’s National Chairman, Senator David Mark. 

During the visit, the ADC leadership described the Bauchi governor as a “fighter” and expressed readiness to welcome him into the party as a key political figure ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Governor Mohammed had earlier lamented that efforts to reconcile aggrieved factions within the PDP had failed, accusing the camp aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, of frustrating peace moves within the party.

He disclosed that he constituted reconciliation committees at both the federal and state levels, but the initiatives yielded no positive results. 

The governor also revealed that he had explored the possibility of joining the APC and met with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on three occasions.