The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Agege and Orile-Agege, Lagos, has vehemently denied allegations of candidate imposition for the upcoming local council elections scheduled for July 12, 2025. The party primaries, held on May 10, 2025, at the state secretariat, utilized a combination of delegate voting and consensus to select candidates for chairmanship and councillorship positions across 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas. While the Election Committee, chaired by Babatunde Ogala, announced the chairmanship candidates for all councils except Yaba LCDA and Mainland LCDA, the process has been mired in controversy, with accusations of pre-determined outcomes and manipulated procedures. Agege and Orile-Agege, where Alhaji Tunde Azeez and Idowu Akinola emerged as chairmanship candidates respectively, have become focal points of these allegations.
In response to the mounting criticism, the APC leadership in both councils convened a meeting at the Agege Local Government Secretariat and subsequently issued a communiqué refuting the claims of imposition. Prominent figures within the party, including Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashir Obasa, and other lawmakers, along with local government chairmen and party leaders, signed the communiqué, asserting that the primaries were conducted fairly and transparently. They characterized those questioning the legitimacy of the process as disgruntled individuals who had long abandoned the party and their communities.
The communiqué highlighted the absence of these dissenting voices from party activities and community engagement for several years, emphasizing their disconnect from the local political landscape. Specifically, it pointed to individuals such as Kayode Opeifa, Dr. Samuel Adejare, and Oluyinka Ogundimu, who had relocated from Agege and were no longer actively involved in the party’s affairs. Similarly, it mentioned Biodun Ogunji, a UK-based chairmanship aspirant who briefly returned to Nigeria solely for the primaries, alongside Bukola Sofidiya, a US-based politician, and Sola Osolana, a former PDP chairmanship candidate based in the UK.
The APC leadership underscored the established process of utilizing consensus or delegate voting for primaries, with local government executive committee members serving as voters. Given that these committees were formed four years ago, during the period when the aforementioned individuals had distanced themselves from the party, their claims of unfair representation were deemed unfounded. The communiqué argued that only those with limited understanding of the situation would consider themselves legitimate contenders, labeling them “pretenders” rather than genuine contenders.
This emphatic rebuttal by the APC leadership in Agege and Orile-Agege aims to quell the growing discontent surrounding the party primaries and reaffirm the legitimacy of the chosen candidates. By highlighting the prolonged absence and lack of engagement of the dissenting voices, the party seeks to portray them as opportunistic outsiders seeking to disrupt a democratic process they had previously abandoned. The communiqué serves as a strong statement of support for the elected candidates and a clear rejection of the accusations of imposition.
The forthcoming local council elections in Lagos hold significant importance for the APC, as they represent a key battleground for political dominance at the grassroots level. The outcome of these elections will have far-reaching implications for the party’s overall standing in the state and its ability to implement its agenda at the local level. The controversy surrounding the primaries underscores the intense competition and high stakes involved in these local elections. The APC’s ability to effectively manage these internal disputes and project an image of unity and fairness will be crucial to its success in the July elections.
