Hope Uzodimma has retained his position as chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) after an attempt by some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to remove him reportedly failed following the intervention of President Bola Tinubu.

The development came after reports emerged that some APC governors had allegedly moved to replace Uzodimma with Peter Mbah during an “extraordinary meeting” held shortly after Vice President Kashim Shettima submitted Tinubu’s presidential nomination forms.

However, at a meeting in Abuja on Friday, 18 of the 31 APC governors passed a vote of confidence on Uzodimma and reaffirmed him as chairman of the forum.

Governors from Lagos State, Kaduna State, Borno State, Ebonyi State, Kogi State, Kano State, Taraba State, Yobe State, Sokoto State, Kebbi State, Benue State, Jigawa State, Ondo State, and Nasarawa State were among those represented at the meeting.

Nasir Idris moved the motion for the vote of confidence, insisting there was no crisis within the forum.

“We don’t have any problem to justify what the media have said,” Idris stated, adding that Uzodimma and Uba Sani would continue as chairman and deputy chairman respectively.

Uba Sani also dismissed reports of division within the forum, describing the APC governors as more united than ever.

“The APC Progressive Governors Forum is very united. We’re stronger now than any other time,” he said, stressing that the governors remained focused on supporting Tinubu’s administration and ensuring its success.

Responding to the endorsement, Uzodimma described the reports of disunity as distractions, saying the governors were committed to supporting Tinubu ahead of the 2027 elections and delivering policies that would benefit Nigerians.

Earlier reports had claimed that governors from states including Adamawa State, Zamfara State, Delta State, Akwa Ibom State, Cross River State, Rivers State, Bayelsa State, Plateau State, Ogun State and others had voted against Uzodimma.

But the PGF Director-General, Folorunso Aluko, swiftly denied the claims, describing them as “false, baseless, and without an iota of truth.”