APC Members Protest Alleged Imposition Of Candidates Ahead Of LG Elections In Lagos

Aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Lagos Mainland Local Government Area and Yaba Local Council Development Area (LCDA) took to the streets on Tuesday to protest once again the alleged imposition of candidates for the upcoming council elections.

Naija News gathered that protests also broke out in the Agege and Orile Agege areas, with party members voicing opposition to the outcome of the APC LG primaries in their constituencies.

The protesters, including several aspirants, expressed anger over what they described as an undemocratic process. One of the protesters, Thaorid Owolabi, who spoke with Punch, criticised the party for allegedly disregarding the findings of an appeal panel.

“Despite the appeal panel recommending that no candidate emerged in Lagos Mainland and Yaba, they want to conceal the report and refuse to implement it. But the truth is clear, and we will stand by the truth with all legal means,” Owolabi stated.

Another protester, Joke Adebanjo, in a chat with Punch, echoed similar sentiments, condemning the alleged imposition of candidates.

“Some party leaders want to impose candidates without primaries, without our voice. This is not democracy, this is an insult to the people of Mainland Local Government! We demand a free and fair process, we demand accountability, and we demand leaders who truly serve us, not just themselves!” Adebanjo emphasised.

Several aspirants who participated in the protest accused the party of ignoring electoral guidelines and assurances given by the appeal panel.

One party member, who wished to remain anonymous, revealed the frustrations of many candidates, saying, “We were all told that leaders would emerge either through consensus or indirect election. In Lagos Mainland and Yaba, we don’t have any ward executives because of an ongoing legal case. Thus, we should only have consensus among aspirants if indirect election isn’t possible, but some impostors sent names to the electoral committee and state excos without the aspirants’ consent or election. Yet, the party went ahead to announce those people as winners and candidates.”

Kafayat Akinpelu, a female aspirant from Lagos Mainland, lamented the exclusion of women in the local government process. As the only female aspirant among 31 candidates for the Executive Chairman position in Lagos Mainland and Yaba LCDA, Akinpelu stated, “I’m seeking justice and advocating for women’s inclusion, aligning with our party’s directive.”

In Agege and Orile Agege, the spokesperson for the Presidential Campaign Council, a factional APC group in the areas, Adetunji Akinyemi, stated that the protests were not merely for show but were aimed at finding a solution.

“These people have moved out this morning. Over 2,000 signatures were generated this morning against imposition. What we are saying is that the only lasting solution to political crises in Orile Agege and Agege is for our leaders to come together and agree on a consensus candidate,” Akinyemi said.

Akinyemi stressed that a united approach to selecting a candidate was the only way to ensure fairness in the region, “What we are saying is very simple – they should allow our leaders to sit down together and agree on a consensus candidate. That is the only way justice can be reflected in Agege and Orile Agege.”