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APC Insists Matawalle is Party Leader, Relegates Yari, Marafa
The All Progressives Congress on Friday reiterated its conferment of the leadership of the Zamfara State chapter of the party on Governor Bello Matawalle.
This is coming on the heels of the rejection of the governor’s leadership by former governor Abdelaziz Yari, and a party stalwart, Senator Kabiru Marafa.
The Chairman, Caretaker/Extraordinary National Convention Planning Committee of the party, Governor Mai Mala Buni, had while welcoming Matawalle into the party, dissolved the APC state executive committee and announced Matawalle as the new party leader.
However, Yari and Marafa had in separate interviews with the Hausa Service of the BBC, rejected Buni’s declaration, insisting that negotiations were still ongoing.
When contacted by Saturday PUNCH, via the telephone, on Friday, the National Secretary of the APC, Senator John Akpanudoedehe, said, “I align myself with our National Chairman, Governor Mai Mala Buni. He spoke the mind of the party; this is not a controversial issue.”
Also, a former governor of the state, Senator Ahmed Yerima, said as things stood today in Zamfara State, Matawalle was the leader of all members of the APC.
He said this in an interview with the Hausa Service of the BBC, monitored in Abuja on Friday.
Yerima said, “For every member of the APC in Zamfara now, whether he says it or not, the Constitution gives Bello Matawale the leadership of the APC.
“Because of that, all of us are under the leadership of the present governor of Zamfara State.
“In the constitution of the APC in Nigeria, the leader of the party in Nigeria today is President Muhammadu Buhari. In every state, the leader of the party is the governor of that state.
“That is why the National Caretaker Committee Chairman, when he went to Zamfara State, said from that day, the state executive of the party was dissolved and the leadership of the party had been bestowed on the Governor Bello Matawalle.
“Recall, even the former governor, Abdelaziz Yari, in one of the interviews he granted said if the party had the governor, the governor was the leader but since there was no governor at the time and he was the immediate past governor, he was the party leader.
“Since we now have a governor, what he told the BBC has come true. Even among family members, there are instances where there will be disagreements between an elder brother and I younger one. That’s how politics is. As the Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai said, this is not the end of the matter. There will still be discussions on how a new caretaker leadership will emerge because a permanent leadership will be decided after the national body comes out with the guidelines for elections. Whoever God gives will be elected. What will I do with the leadership of the APC in Zamfara? I’m like a father to all of them. When I was governor, both Yari and Matawale served under my government.”
Giving a historical background to the crisis in the state chapter of the party, Yerima traced it to Yari’s decision to hand-pick candidates for the party ahead of the 2019 elections.
He said, “The former governor picked candidates before the elections. President Muhammadu Buhari sent me to Yari to inform him that he wasn’t in support of his decision. I went to Yari to deliver Buhari’s message.
“In response, Yari said it was a matter between him and the former national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole. When the President visited the Zamfara Government House, he repeated the message he sent me to Yari and said he would not support any of the candidates.”
Yerima spoke against the backdrop of the rejection of Matawalle’s leadership by Yari and Marafa.
The duo had in an earlier interview with the BBC, said, “One thing we do not agree with is the pronouncement by Governor Buni (who said Matawalle is the leader of the APC in the state), because it was not part of discussions we had with six of our governors (prior to Matawalle joining the APC).
“What we agreed was that let us go and inaugurate Bello and return to negotiate. What we agreed was what we would give to the party and what we would take from the government.
“But when we went had there were disagreements; we discovered that some people claimed that the party leadership had been dissolved. There is no way that can happen because there is no one who has the authority to do so.”
It was gathered that supporters of Yari and Marafa are already spoiling for a fight as the party prepares to begin ward and state congresses.
The Punch
Political economist, Prof. Pat Utomi, has stated that if the former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, decides to run as someone’s vice-presidential candidate, he will immediately stop supporting him.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Prof. Utomi assured that the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party will contest for the presidency in 2027, following his formal defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) on Wednesday.
“I can tell you that Peter Obi will contest for the presidency. The day he becomes somebody’s vice president, I walk away from his corner. I can tell you that for a fact,” Prof. Utomi said on the programme.
In the same interview, Prof. Utomi also made a case for limiting presidential and gubernatorial candidates to Nigerians aged 70 and below.
He lamented that the Nigerian presidency has increasingly become a “retirement home,” criticising both former President Muhammadu Buhari’s and President Bola Tinubu’s administrations as “government in absentia.”
“Something important about this election to bear in mind is that the Nigerian presidency has become a retirement home where people go for the Nigerian state to pay their medical bills. It is not acceptable. They don’t have the fitness to run the country. The last one, and the current one, have essentially been government-in-absentia leaders.”
“I, Pat Utomi, am insisting that I will canvass to the Nigerian people that nobody over the age of 70 should run for an executive position, whether it be governor or president,” he concluded.
Rescue mission
Obi, who came third in the 2023 presidential election with over 6 million votes, officially announced his defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Enugu on Wednesday.
In his speech at the event, Obi said his move to the ADC marks the beginning of a journey to rescue the country from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“Today is an important day; today is the last day of 2025, so we are ending this year with the hope that, in 2026, we will begin a journey to rescue our country and set it on the path of proper socio-economic development that will be unifying and inclusive,” Obi stated.
He added: “We have all watched as those who benefited from our democracy have, over time, become accessories to destroying it—either through coercion or gangsterism against the opposition. We cannot allow this to happen; we will resist it.”
President Bola Tinubu has assured Nigerians that 2026 will be a more prosperous year for all.
Tinubu stated this in his New Year message on Thursday, adding that his administration would sustain the momentum on its major reforms.
“During 2025, we sustained the momentum on our major reforms. We had a fiscal reset and also recorded steady economic progress.
“Despite persistent global economic headwinds, we recorded tangible and measurable gains, particularly in the economy.
“These achievements reaffirm our belief that the difficult but necessary reforms we embarked upon are moving us in the right direction with more concrete results on the horizon for the ordinary Nigerian,” the President said in the statement he personally signed.
Consolidating gains
Tinubu said that the focus in 2026 would be on consolidating the gains and continuing to build a resilient, sustainable, inclusive, and growth-oriented economy.
According to him, Nigeria closed 2025 on a strong note, as despite the policies to fight inflation, it recorded a robust GDP growth each quarter, with annualised growth expected to exceed four per cent for the year.
Tinubu explained that the nation maintained trade surpluses and achieved greater exchange rate stability while inflation declined steadily and reached below 15 per cent, in line with his administration’s target.
“In 2026, we are determined to reduce inflation further and ensure that the benefits of reform reach every Nigerian household. In 2025, the Nigerian Stock Exchange outperformed its peers, posting a robust 48.12 per cent gain and consolidating its bullish run that began in the second half of 2023.
“Supported by sound monetary policy management, our foreign reserves stood at $45.4 billion as of December 29, 2025, providing a substantial buffer against external shocks for the Naira. We expect this position to strengthen further in the New Year,” he said.
“Foreign direct investment is also responding positively. In the third quarter of 2025, FDI rose to $720 million, up from $90 million in the preceding quarter, reflecting renewed investor confidence in Nigeria’s economic direction, which global credit rating agencies, including Moody’s, Fitch, and Standard & Poor’s, have consistently affirmed and applauded,” Tinubu added.
Tax reforms
The President further assured that with patience, fiscal discipline, and unity of purpose, Nigeria would emerge in 2026 stronger and better positioned for sustained growth.
According to him, as inflation and interest rates moderate, his administration expects increased fiscal space for productive investment in infrastructure and human capital development.
“We are also confronting the challenge of multiple taxation across all tiers of government. I commend states that have aligned with the national tax harmonisation agenda by adopting harmonised tax laws to reduce the excessive burden of taxes, levies, and fees on our people and on basic consumption.
“The new year marks a critical phase in implementing our tax reforms, designed to build a fair, competitive, and robust fiscal foundation for Nigeria.
“By harmonising our tax system, we aim to raise revenue sustainably, address fiscal distortions and strengthen our capacity to finance infrastructure and social investments that will deliver shared prosperity,” he added.
National security
Tinubu said that though the path of reform is never easy, his administration remains mindful that economic progress must be accompanied by security and peace.
“Our nation continues to confront security threats from criminal and terrorist elements determined to disrupt our way of life. In collaboration with international partners, including the United States, decisive actions were taken against terrorist targets in parts of the Northwest on December 24.
“Our Armed Forces have since sustained operations against terror networks and criminal strongholds across the Northwest and Northeast,” he said.
But the President stated that in 2026, Nigeria’s security and intelligence agencies would deepen cooperation with regional and global partners to eliminate all threats to national security.
“We remain committed to protecting lives, property, and the territorial integrity of our country.
“I continue to believe that a decentralised policing system with appropriate safeguards, complemented by properly regulated forest guards, all anchored on accountability, is critical to effectively addressing terrorism, banditry, and related security challenges,” he added.
Investments in infrastructure
The New Year marks the beginning of a more robust phase of economic growth, with tangible improvements in the lives of our people.
Tinubu also said that his government would accelerate the implementation of the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme, aiming to bring at least 10 million Nigerians into productive economic activity by empowering at least 1,000 people in each of the 8,809 wards across the country.
“Through agriculture, trade, food processing, and mining, we will stimulate local economies and expand grassroots opportunities.
“We will also continue to invest in modernising Nigeria’s infrastructure – roads, power, ports, railways, airports, pipelines, healthcare, education, and agriculture to strengthen food security and improve quality of life. All ongoing projects will continue without interruption,” he said.
He, however, urged Nigerians to play their part to achieve the objectives in 2026 by standing together in unity and purpose, upholding patriotism, and serving the country with honour and integrity in their respective roles.
Let us resolve to be better citizens, better neighbours, and better stewards of our nation.
An Abuja High Court has cleared the way for the implementation of Nigeria’s new tax regime scheduled to commence on January 1, 2026, dismissing a suit seeking to halt the programme.
The ruling gives the Federal government, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the National Assembly full legal backing to proceed with the take-off of the new tax laws.
The suit was filed by the Incorporated Trustees of African Initiative for Abuse of Public Trustees, which dragged the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the President, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the President of the Senate, Speaker of the House of Representatives and the National Assembly before the court over alleged discrepancies in the recently enacted tax laws.
In an ex-parte motion, the plaintiff sought an interim injunction restraining the Federal Government, FIRS, the National Assembly and related agencies from implementing or enforcing the provisions of the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025; Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025; Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025; and the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, 2025, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
The group also asked the court to restrain the President from implementing the laws in any part of the federation pending the hearing of its motion on notice.
However, in a ruling delivered on Tuesday, Justice Kawu struck out the application, holding that it lacked merit and failed to establish sufficient legal grounds to warrant the grant of the reliefs sought.
The court ruled that the plaintiffs did not demonstrate how the implementation of the new tax laws would occasion irreparable harm or violate any provision of the Constitution, stressing that matters of fiscal policy and economic reforms fall squarely within the powers of government.
Justice Kawu further held that once a law has been duly enacted and gazetted, any alleged errors or controversies can only be addressed through legislative amendment or a substantive court order, noting that disagreements over tax laws cannot stop the implementation of an existing law.
Consequently, the court affirmed that there was no legal impediment to the commencement of the new tax regime and directed that implementation should proceed as scheduled from January 1, 2026.
The new tax regime is anchored on four landmark tax reform bills signed into law in 2025 as part of the Federal Government’s broader fiscal and economic reform agenda aimed at boosting revenue, simplifying the tax system and reducing leakages.
The laws — the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025, and the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, 2025 — consolidate and replace several existing tax statutes, including laws governing companies income tax, personal income tax, value added tax, capital gains tax and stamp duties.
Key elements of the reforms include the harmonisation of multiple taxes into a more streamlined framework, expansion of the tax base, protection for low-income earners and small businesses, and the introduction of modern, technology-driven tax administration systems such as digital filing and electronic compliance monitoring.
The reforms also provide for the restructuring of federal tax administration, including the creation of the Nigeria Revenue Service, to strengthen efficiency, coordination and revenue collection across government levels.
While the Federal government has described the reforms as critical to stabilising public finances and funding infrastructure and social services, the laws have generated intense public debate, with some civil society groups and political actors alleging discrepancies between the versions passed by the National Assembly and those later gazetted.
These concerns sparked calls for suspension, re-gazetting and legal action, culminating in the suit dismissed by the Abuja High Court.
Reacting to the judgment, stakeholders described the ruling as a major boost for the reforms, saying it has removed all legal obstacles that could have delayed the implementation of the new tax framework.
