JALINGO, Nigeria — Vice President Kashim Shettima on Saturday formally received Agbu Kefas into the ruling All Progressives Congress at a grand rally in Jalingo, calling the governor’s defection “personal” and “touching” and urging party members to rally behind him as the new leader of the party in Taraba State.
Shettima said the move strengthens the party’s footprint in the North-East and described the development as a point of pride for the zone’s ruling-party bloc. He also expressed optimism that the governors of Adamawa State and Bauchi State would “at the appropriate time” review their political choices and align with the APC.
In remarks delivered on behalf of President Bola Tinubu, Shettima said the presidency would prioritise development partnership with Taraba, describing the state as strategically important for food and energy security. He said Kefas’ entry into the party guarantees him leadership of the APC structure in the state, in line with the party’s approach that sitting governors lead the party in their states.
Governor Kefas, who won the 2023 election under the Peoples Democratic Party, said his decision to join the APC was driven by governance priorities rather than personal ambition, framing the move as an effort to reposition Taraba for faster development and stronger access to federal support.
The event drew top national party figures, including APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda, who described the defection as a major political gain for Taraba and urged remaining opposition governors to reconsider their positions. Some reports quoted Yilwatda warning that continued resistance to the ruling party could carry political costs ahead of future elections, while insisting the APC was expanding through persuasion rather than coercion.
Kefas’ switch is the latest in a string of high-profile defections reshaping Nigeria’s political map ahead of 2027, with the APC increasingly projecting momentum through governors’ crossovers and public receptions designed to demonstrate party unity and control of state-level structures.
