President Bola Tinubu has officially handed over Governor Agbu Kefas of Taraba State to the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nentawe Yilwatda, in preparation for his formal entry into the ruling party.
Governor Kefas revealed this on Thursday during a meeting with APC youths and stakeholders at the T.Y. Danjuma House in Abuja. He said President Tinubu had received his letter of intent to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC and had personally endorsed the move.
According to the governor, the President not only approved his defection but also formally introduced him to Yilwatda, paving the way for his official unveiling as an APC member in Taraba State.
Comrade Abubakar Gembo, one of the party’s youth leaders, confirmed the development after the meeting, describing the governor’s planned defection as a “major boost” for the APC in Taraba.
“Governor Kefas called us to inform us of his readiness to join our great party, the APC. He told us he had met with President Tinubu, who received him and handed him over to the national chairman,” Gembo said.
He noted that the governor also assured the youths of his continued commitment to inclusive governance — a principle he has maintained even during his tenure under the PDP.
Similarly, Idris Ayuba, Chairman of the APC Youth Vanguard in Taraba, said the defection had already been “perfected” at the national level, awaiting a formal ceremony at the ward, local government, and state levels.
Ayuba called on APC members and youths across Taraba to rally behind Kefas, describing him as a youth-focused leader whose policies have consistently championed empowerment and inclusion.
In a separate statement, the APC Youth Vanguard’s Publicity Secretary, Rikwense Muri, confirmed the development, noting that the governor met with key youth leaders and party influencers to build a united front for Taraba’s development.
“Speaking during the meeting, Governor Kefas said Taraba could no longer afford to remain isolated from the mainstream of national politics.
“He explained that his decision to realign politically was driven by the higher goal of ensuring greater development, improved security, and increased federal presence in the state.
‘I am guided by the need to put Taraba first,’ the governor was quoted as saying. ‘Our state must take its rightful place in national development, and that can only happen when we work hand in hand with the centre’,” he stated.
APC youth stakeholders hailed the governor for his courage and foresight, describing his defection as a decisive step that places Taraba’s collective interest above partisan divides.
Governor Kefas, who was elected in 2023 under the PDP, will become the first sitting Taraba governor to defect to the APC since the state’s return to democratic rule in 1999.
