Governor rejects claims of secret APC bargain, as party realignments reshape the 2027 political landscape
UNITY TIMES POLITICAL DESK
Grow your business with us
JOS — Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang has moved to shut down reports of a political bargain under which he allegedly agreed to a 60:40 power-sharing arrangement as part of an anticipated political realignment with the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The controversy comes against the backdrop of the governor’s dramatic political movement into the APC and the continuing struggle among political blocs to establish control of party structures ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Mutfwang’s denial is significant because questions over the distribution of political positions have become increasingly sensitive in Plateau, particularly as former opposition figures enter the ruling party and seek accommodation with existing APC structures.
Reports of an agreement involving a 60:40 formula have circulated amid internal discussions about how legacy APC members and political newcomers would share party positions.
Indeed, reporting from Plateau has previously confirmed the existence of a 50:50 formula for principal positions and 60:40 for non-principal positions in some APC internal arrangements involving legacy members and newer entrants.
But the existence of such arrangements should not automatically be interpreted as proof of a personal political bargain involving the governor.
Why the rumour matters
The controversy goes beyond numbers.
In Nigerian politics, control of party structures often determines who controls nominations, delegates and ultimately the machinery of an election.
A governor joining a ruling party can therefore dramatically alter the balance of power.
Mutfwang’s political realignment has already transformed Plateau’s 2027 equation. He resigned from the PDP in December 2025 and joined the APC in January 2026. He subsequently secured the APC’s governorship ticket in a landslide primary.
The development effectively turned Plateau from an opposition-held state into one controlled by the ruling party. But political mergers rarely occur without tensions.
Long-standing party members can fear displacement by newcomers, while defectors may expect meaningful political accommodation after bringing their political structures into a new party. That tension is now playing out across several Nigerian states.
The 2027 question
For Plateau, the immediate challenge is whether the APC can transform the governor’s political realignment into genuine internal cohesion.
The state has historically experienced intense political and communal divisions, making the management of political competition particularly important.
Mutfwang’s denial therefore carries a wider message: whatever political arrangements exist within the APC, they must not become a source of renewed factional conflict.
With 2027 approaching, Plateau will be one of the states to watch closely.
About The Author