Lagos LG poll: APC leaders deny imposition allegations in primaries

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The leaders of the Agege and Orile-Agege chapters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos have denied allegations that they were forced to choose party candidates for chairmanship and councillorship in respective localities for the upcoming state council elections on July 12, 2025.

The party’s state secretariat hosted the party primaries for chairmanship and councillorship on Saturday, May 10, 2025, for all 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas.

The results of the exercises, which were announced by the Election Committee under the direction of Babatunde Ogala and which nominated the party chairmanship candidates in all councils except Yaba LCDA and Mainland LCDA, have been engulfed in controversy based on delegate voting and consensus.

In addition to allegations that the election procedures were faulty, biased in favor of certain candidates, and planned to accomplish preset goals, there are complaints of purported impositions.

Both Agege and Orile-Agege, where Alhaji Tunde Azeez and Idowu Akinola were elected as the candidates for the chairmanship of the ruling party, respectively, have a claim to imposition.

Following a meeting at the Agege Local Government Secretariat on Tuesday, the party leadership in both councils released a statement disputing the imposition claim.

Mudashir Obasa, the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly; Alhaji Jubril Kareem, the lawmaker who represents AGEGE 02 in the state House of Assembly; Dr. Wale Ahmed, Member of the House of Representatives; and Special Adviser to the Governor, Afolabi Tajudeen, Commissioner for Establishment and Training, Afolabi Ayantayo, APC APEX LEADER, Alhaji Safari Adaranijo, and First Executive Chairman AGEGE LG, Alhaji Genius Owolabi Dada.

Other individuals include: Rotimi Adeshina, APC LEADER, Elder Sunday Ajide, former House of Assembly member, Richard Akin Osungboye, former APC Party chairman, Alhaji Ayoni Shittu, APC AGEGE LG Chairman, Alhaji Tunde Azeez, APC ORILE-AGEGE LG Chairman, Sunday Johnson Babatunde, former LAHASCOM chairman, High Chief Ganiu Kola Egunjobi, Executive Chairman AGEGE LG, Sunday Johnson Babatunde, former LAHASCOM chairman, Richard Akin Osungboye, former APC AGEGE LG Chairman, Alhaji Ayoni Shittu, APC AGEGE LG Chairman, APC ORILE-AGEGE LG Chairman, and Rotimi Adeshina, former Council Chairman and Member of the House of Assembly.

The communique read, “Those faulting the process that led to the emergence of APC candidates for the chairmanship and councillorship in all the 13 wards abandoned the party and the communities long ago.

“As far as we are concerned, the primary elections were free and fair; and suggestion by some elements that the candidates that emerged were imposed on them is misleading.

“Those making these false claims are sore losers, and for years ostracised themselves from APC and our communities.

“To put it in context, the likes of MD of Nigerian Railway Corporation, Kayode Opeifa, ex-House of Representatives member, Dr Samuel Adejare, and three-time House of Assembly member, Oluyinka Ogundimu have moved out of Agege for years in terms of residence and are not involved in the activities of the party in both councils.

“In the same boat is Biodun Ogunji, a chairmanship aspirant in Agege who lives in the UK with his family but weeks back came down to Nigeria for the purpose of his aspiration.

“The same thing with his fellow failed aspirant, Bukola Sofidiya, aka Gidado, a US-based Agege politician and Sola Osolana who is based in the UK and was the chairmanship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Agege in the last council election in the state.”

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