Tinubu Pressured by Lagos APC Stakeholders to Intervene in Primary Crises

Before the upcoming local government elections in the state, a group of All Progressives Congress (APC) members in Lagos’ Eti-Osa East Local Council Development Area (LCDA) have urged President Bola Tinubu to form a panel to address the alleged injustices experienced by some candidates in the recently concluded party primaries for chairmanship and councillorship positions.

Members of the party have expressed discontent with the conduct and results of the primaries, which were held at the party’s state secretariat on Acme Road. The protests have extended throughout Lagos.

The demonstrators claimed that party leaders and electoral committee members unfairly excluded other candidates by manipulating the process to favor hand-picked candidates.

The Concerned APC Stakeholders in Eti-Osa East LCDA group urged Tinubu to step in and form an inquiry panel in an open letter to the president that was made accessible to reporters on Thursday.

In an effort to right the perceived wrongs and restore internal party democracy, the group is calling for an investigation into the alleged “impunity” and “electoral fraud” that they say polluted the primaries.

Many candidates are upset with the primaries’ conclusion, not because they lost legitimately but rather because the process was tainted and the public’s will was undermined. What should have been a democratic exercise in several local government areas throughout the state—most obviously in Eti-Osa East LCDA—became a planned display of partiality, dishonesty, and betrayal of our party’s core values.

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One particularly troubling instance is the case of Hon. John Campos Ogundare, the current Chairman of Eti-Osa East LCDA. In a highly undemocratic way, he was denied the party’s chairmanship ticket in spite of his outstanding performance and the evident changes that emerged under his direction, such as the restoration of security, environmental reforms, youth empowerment, and improved cooperation between the party and the government.

“It is documented that within the first six months of taking office, Hon. Campos Ogundare addressed the LCDA’s security issues head-on, restoring calm and tranquility to a region that had previously been riven by turmoil and dread.

“There have been noticeable advancements, and the locals continue to love his people-focused initiatives. Therefore, it is both unreasonable and unfair for leaders who are self-centered and insensitive to deny such a man the chance to carry on his good deeds once he has established trustworthy and cooperative relationships,” the letter stated in part.

The APC stakeholders stated in the cited letter, “A Call for Presidential Intervention In The Crisis Rocking APC In Lagos Arising from Electoral Malpractices & Injustice That Marred the just-concluded primaries of the party in The State for Forthcoming LG Elections,” that the party could not afford the internal conflict caused by the primaries, particularly in Eti-Osa, where the party lost the area’s Federal Constituency to the Labour Party in the general election of 2023.

“As we write this, sir, the APC in Eti-Osa East is divided, and the majority of the decent members of the LCDA are angry over the injustice done to the council’s _performing_ Executive Chairman, who is the favorite of the electorate and is revolutionizing administration in the neighborhood where you live.

The letter went on to say, “Mr. President, you would be doing no good if you let this injustice continue, since the electoral fraud directly contradicts your commitment to justice and equity.”