Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The political crisis brewing in the Gombe State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) exploded into public view on Thursday, May 7, 2026, when former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami, formally submitted his governorship nomination form to the party’s national headquarters in Abuja. The submission came five days after the state leadership of the APC, at an enlarged stakeholders’ meeting on Sunday, May 3, announced businessman and politician Dr. Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna as the party’s consensus governorship candidate for the 2027 election.
Pantami’s defiant act, carried out by a delegation of his supporters who presented the completed documents to APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka, drew a clear line in the sand between the former minister and the state party machinery controlled by Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya. The delegation, speaking on behalf of the “Pantamiyya Movement,” said the nomination form was purchased by youths whose lives had been positively impacted by Pantami’s support and interventions over the years. They declared that “the contest is now fully underway, and Gombe State is set to witness one of the most keenly contested primaries in recent political history. There will be no retreat and no surrender”.
The consensus arrangement that triggered the confrontation was unveiled on Sunday, May 3, following a meeting presided over by Governor Yahaya, who is regarded as the leader of the APC in the state. According to a statement issued by Ismaila Misilli, the governor’s Director-General of Press Affairs, the stakeholders’ meeting unanimously endorsed Gwamna as the consensus governorship candidate. The same meeting also ratified consensus candidates for the three senatorial districts, six House of Representatives seats, and all 24 State House of Assembly constituencies in Gombe.
However, the announcement was met with immediate and fierce opposition. In an interview with the BBC Hausa Service on Tuesday, May 5, Pantami rejected the consensus arrangement outright, arguing that the process violated the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 as well as the APC constitution. He laid out three conditions that a valid consensus must meet, none of which, he said, had been fulfilled: all aspirants must personally agree to the outcome; even those absent must have representatives acting on their behalf; and the agreement must comply with the law. “What happened is not consensus but coronation,” Pantami stated, insisting that the party must proceed with direct primary elections in line with democratic principles.
The former minister also detailed procedural irregularities that he said had undermined the credibility of the consensus process. According to Pantami, the invitation to the stakeholders’ meeting was issued with less than 20 hours’ notice, making it impossible for him and other aspirants based outside Gombe to attend. He recalled a prior meeting with Governor Yahaya where the governor had promised fairness and suggested that if consensus failed, a direct primary would be conducted. “As part of the consensus process, guidelines were supposed to be drafted, but none of us ever saw them,” Pantami said. In a speech that sent shockwaves through the party, he vowed: “I will challenge this injustice of Gombe APC governorship consensus even if I lose my life doing it. If there is no justice, I will fight it legally, a fight like never seen before in Nigeria”.
Pantami is not alone in his opposition. Sources indicate that two other heavyweight aspirants, former Transportation Minister Saidu Ahmed Alkali and former Governor Senator Danjuma Goje (who is contesting for the Gombe Central senatorial seat), have also rejected the consensus arrangement. Together, they have formed a formidable bloc against Governor Yahaya’s preferred candidate, arguing that imposing a candidate under the guise of “unity” will only lead to further fragmentation of the party ahead of the general elections.
In response to the growing backlash, the Gombe State APC leadership has defended its decision. On May 5, the party issued a statement through its State Publicity Secretary, Moses Kyari, insisting that consensus was adopted in line with the APC constitution as a legitimate and preferred method for candidate emergence. The statement stressed that direct primaries remain available for any aspirant dissatisfied with the consensus arrangement. “Neither the Electoral Act nor the APC Constitution imposes consensus as a fait accompli. Where any aspirant disagrees with the consensus arrangement, the party has no alternative but to proceed with the direct primary option,” the party stated. The party noted that some aspirants now objecting to the outcome had voluntarily declined to participate in the consensus-building process.
Governor Yahaya has also publicly defended the process. In remarks on Wednesday, May 6, the governor said the party remained open to conducting primary elections if aspirants preferred that option to the consensus arrangement.
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has also weighed in, urging President Bola Tinubu to intervene and reverse what it described as the “exclusion” of Pantami from the gubernatorial primaries. In a statement on Thursday, May 7, MURIC called the consensus arrangement “a kangaroo consensus and an exercise in futility,” describing it as unfair, parochial, undemocratic and therefore unacceptable.
As the dust settles, the APC in Gombe State faces a potential legal and political showdown. The party’s governorship primary is scheduled for May 21, 2026. Pantami has made clear that he will remain in the race regardless of the leadership’s preference. “If it’s direct primary, everybody knows, we will win. If there’s no justice, I will fight it legally,” he told BBC Hausa. His supporters, who purchased his nomination form for him, have rejected calls to back down, declaring that Gombe State “is set to witness one of the most keenly contested primaries in recent political history”.
At the heart of the crisis is a fundamental question about the nature of democracy within the APC: can a consensus declared by a governor and a handful of party leaders override the lawful ambition of qualified aspirants who have met every requirement of the Electoral Act? For Pantami and his supporters, the answer is emphatically no. For Governor Yahaya and the state leadership, consensus is a legitimate tool to preserve party cohesion. The resolution of this standoff will not only determine who flies the APC flag in the 2027 governorship election but will also send a powerful signal about the state of internal democracy within Nigeria’s ruling party. With the primary just days away and a legal challenge looming, Gombe State is about to witness a political battle that will test the limits of party discipline and the resilience of Nigeria’s democratic institutions. The gulf between the governor’s “coronation” and Pantami’s “no retreat, no surrender” leaves little room for compromise, and the coming weeks will determine whether the party can hold together or fracture irreparably.
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