By Editor Mahmoud Muhammad Kano.
Governor Inuwa Yahaya has resolved a two-decade-long political feud in Gombe State and thrown his weight behind Dr. Jamilu Isiyaku Gwamna to lead the APC into the 2027 governorship race.
The move came after weeks of quiet shuttle diplomacy led by the governor, which brought rival camps in the party to the negotiating table for the first time since 2003.
On Sunday, the Gombe State APC unveiled its consensus arrangement, naming Jamilu as the preferred governorship candidate for 2027. The party described the process as legitimate and necessary to avoid rancor.
State Publicity Secretary Moses Kyari said the party painstakingly conducted broad-based consultations with elders, the State Working Committee, and all aspirants before reaching the decision.
Kyari noted that the consensus was the product of deliberate effort to heal old wounds that had split the party into factions since the early 2000s.
“The party finds it surprising that those who voluntarily absented themselves from the process would now turn around to question an outcome they refused to help shape,” Kyari said in a statement.
He maintained that the door remains open for any aspirant who disagrees with the consensus to test their popularity at a direct primary, in line with the party’s constitution and guidelines.
The consensus list, however, left out major political figures including Senator Danjuma Goje, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, Senator Anthony Siyako Yaro, and Saidu Ahmed Alkali.
Goje, who is seeking a return to the Gombe Central Senate seat, and Pantami, a former minister with strong grassroots support, both rejected the outcome through their aides.
Sources close to the two leaders said they were not invited to the final round of consultations and only learnt of the consensus after it was announced.
The development has reignited old intrigues in Gombe politics, with allies of Goje and Pantami accusing the state leadership of sidelining key stakeholders.
Despite the pushback, Governor Inuwa Yahaya is credited by party insiders for ending what many called the “20-year cold war” between the Goje camp and successive state executives.
A senior party chieftain said the governor convened three separate meetings in Kumo, Billiri, and Gombe between April and May 2026, where he insisted that only unity could guarantee victory in 2027.
Out of those talks came the decision that Jamilu should take the lead, with assurances that other aspirants would be accommodated in federal appointments and Senate slots.
Kyari urged all aspirants and supporters to avoid statements or actions capable of disrupting party unity and its electoral prospects.
With Jamilu now carrying the governor’s endorsement and the party’s consensus tag, the next test is whether the aggrieved leaders will challenge him at the primaries or seek peace for the sake of 2027.
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