Unease Has gripped the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC following Thursday’s decision by the Rivers State House of Assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara, with the party’s national hierarchy maintaining a conspicuous silence on the unfolding crisis.

As of Friday, neither the Professor Nentawe Yilwatda-led National Working Committee NWC nor the Tony Okocha-led APC executive recognized by the party in Rivers State had issued any official response to the impeachment move, heightening speculations over the party’s internal position on the matter.

However, the dissolved Emeka Beke-led state executive committee of the APC, which has been locked in a prolonged leadership tussle with the Okocha faction, broke ranks to call on the NWC to urgently intervene and broker a political solution to the escalating tension in the state.

The leadership crisis within the Rivers APC predates the current impeachment controversy.

On November 22, 2023, the party’s NWC appointed Tony Okocha as chairman of a seven-member caretaker committee following the suspension of Emeka Beke earlier in April 2023 over alleged anti-party activities and financial misconduct. The suspension was subsequently extended to dissolve the entire state working committee.

On November 29, 2024, a state congress organized by the party formally elected Okocha as substantive chairman of the Rivers APC. Despite this, the Beke-led executive continued to contest the legitimacy of the process and pursued legal redress to reclaim control of the party structure.

To clarify the party’s position, the APC NWC on August 3, 2025, explicitly warned members of the public and stakeholders that only the Okocha-led executive represented the party’s interests in Rivers State.

In a statement, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, dismissed Beke’s claims to the chairmanship as false and misleading.

“The attention of the All Progressives Congress APC has been drawn to media reports of a claim by Mr. Emeka Beke to the chairmanship of the Rivers State chapter of our party.

“We wish to clarify, for the record, that Chief Tony Okocha is, and remains, the Chairman of the Rivers State chapter of our party”, Morning said.

He added; “We urge our teeming members in the state, and the general public, to disregard the said reports or reference to Mr Beke as State Chairman of Rivers APC as false and misleading.”

The internal schism deepened further on December 12, 2025, when Governor Fubara formally registered his membership with the APC faction aligned to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

The governor was presented with his APC membership card at Government House by the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, SAN, alongside Okocha, and was also decorated with the party’s insignia.

Although party insiders told Saturday Vanguard that opinions within the NWC remain divided ahead of a scheduled meeting next week, the Okocha-led executive, which enjoys formal recognition from the NWC, is widely regarded as loyal to the FCT minister.