CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA.
Barr. Alphonsus Eba Alphonsus Eba has withdrawn all court cases challenging his removal as chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Cross River State, formally ending a bitter internal dispute that has dragged on for months, and threatened the party’s stability ahead of critical political realignments.
“I have therefore withdrawn all legal processes earlier filed in court and further relinquish the interim orders in my favour,” Eba wrote on Facebook on Monday. “Henceforth, I cease to be called APC Chairman of Cross River State.”
The decision comes barely a month after Eba headed to court to contest the National Executive Committee’s resolution of December 19, 2025, which nullified the October 16, 2021 state congress that produced him as chairman. His exit now clears the way for the party’s national leadership to move on without a lingering legal cloud.
“I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith,” he wrote, quoting the Bible. “It will be pleasing to God for us to let our mantra of peace, love, unity and growth reign in APC.”
At the centre of the controversy was a familiar APC problem, Parallel congresses, competing court orders. A party haunted by the 2019 experience, when pre-election disputes cost it candidates and legitimacy.
“We cannot afford to return APC to the 2019 situation where similar disagreements denied the party’s candidates legal validity,” Eba said.
Party sources say pressure had been mounting quietly from Abuja and from senior figures in Cross River, urging a truce to avoid another prolonged court battle.
However, Eba’s decision was not framed as a retreat.
“It is gratifying that God saw me through my four-year tenure to the end in peace,” he wrote. “Mine was a worthy political battle in the last 15 years.”
In a sharp signal of loyalty, he pledged continued support for President Bola Tinubu, APC national chairman Nentawe Yilwatda, and Cross River governor Bassey Otu. “I remain a committed member of the party,” he said, urging members to revalidate their APC registration.
What happens next for APC in Cross River
For now, Eba says he is stepping back into private life. “I have returned to my full legal practice, my farm business and other businesses,” he wrote, adding that he will focus on the rubber sector as chairman of the governing board of the Rubber Research Institute, Benin.
What happens next inside the Cross River APC remains open. The party leadership is expected to consolidate control of the state structure following his exit. Whether the truce holds, or merely pauses another round of internal contest, will become clear in the coming weeks.
