An aura of security was heightened around the venue of the APC NEC meeting on Blantyre Street, with armed personnel, including soldiers from the Guards Brigade, blocking all access routes. Both vehicular and pedestrian movement in the area were restricted, and journalists were denied entry despite the party spokesman, Felix Morka, releasing an accredited list of reporters earlier in the day.
Among the early arrivals were members of the National Working Committee (NWC), the Forum of State Chairmen, former Zamfara State governor Abdulaziz Yari, Minister of Budget and National Planning Atiku Bagudu, and Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu. Several state governors including those from Edo, Benue, Ondo, Ekiti, Kaduna, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Yobe, Niger, Lagos, Kogi, Ogun, and Imo were also present, along with the deputy governor of Ebonyi and former governors of Kogi, Kebbi, Niger, Zamfara, and Plateau.
Notably absent from the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting were former President Muhammadu Buhari, former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, and former Rivers State governor and ex-Minister of Transport Rotimi Amaechi.
READ ALSO: P-Square ex-manager Jude okoye arraigned by EFCC
President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas arrived at the venue at noon. The meeting was chaired by APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje.
This NEC meeting, the first since Tinubu took office in May 2023, followed a national caucus meeting held a day earlier at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. Some party members, including El-Rufai and former National Vice Chairman Salihu Lukman, have previously criticized the ruling party for a lack of internal democracy.
