Kunle Adelabu
-Councillorship candidate drop due to forged certificate
Candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are currently battling with uncertainties as those favoured by the party for the Chairmanship and Councillorship positions for the July 24 Local Government elections find it difficult to embark on campaign.
THE IMPACT gathered that past experience and the way the party carried out the selection process have made it very difficult for the Chairmanship and Councillorship candidates to openly engage in campaign because they are not sure of what may happen next.
It was also gathered that most of the candidates are waiting for Saturday, June 26, 2021, which is the final day for the submission of nomination forms, before knowing what to do next.
We also gathered that there have been some underground moves by some aggrieved aspirants to ensure that the names of those favoured are removed and replaced by theirs.
According to the election guidelines issued by the Lagos State Independently Electoral Committee (LASIEC), Saturday, June 26, 2021, is fixed as the closing date for the submission of nomination forms of ‘substituted’ candidates by the political parties.
It was gathered that many of the candidates are still living in great fear that their names may be removed for other people due to intense lobbying and power play that are still going on within the ruling party in the state.
Out of the six Chairmanship candidates in Ikorodu Division, only two – Builder Sesan Daini, Chairman, Igbogbo/Baye LCDA and Hon. Wasiu Agoro, Chairman, Ijede LCDA and possibly, Mrs Motunrayo Alogba, the current Vice Chairman of Ijede LCDA and the party’s Chairmanship candidate in the council, are safe.
While both Daini and Agoro emerged through consensus in their respective domains, Hon. Alogba is the party’s favoured candidate who emerged through providence.
For others, there are still strong and potent forces battling against their candidature.
This, according to report, is the reason why most of the Chairmanship candidates of the APC have not been seen in public in recent time except those that are safe among them.
THE IMPACT also gathered that some of the candidates, especially those vying for the Councillorship seats, that submitted fake results and other documents are not really finding it easy as the party is still working on removing them.
A case in point is a sitting Councillor in Ward F in Ikorodu Local Government, who is seeking re – election but whom we gathered has been allegedly removed by the party at the state level due to the two forged WASSCE results he submitted.
It was gathered that another aspirant, Mr Oluwakemi Buraimoh, has been given the party’s ticket to replace the said Councillor.
THE IMPACT also gathered that a team made up of some party leaders, including the Ikorodu LGA Chairman, Alhaji Taiwo Longe, Council Chairman, Hon. Wasiu Adeshina and party chieftain, Alhaji Musliu Animashaun (De Cubano), could not save the said Councilor whom we learnt was drilled when summoned to the state Secretariat of the party.
Also, another candidate in Ikorodu Constituency I is alleged to have a fraud case with the Economic Fraud and Financial Crimes (EFCC) and we gathered that the party is also looking into his case too.
Speaking with a Councillor in Ikorodu Constituency I, he said that the campaign is not in full motion yet because nobody is sure of anything now.
“My brother, we cannot start campaigning now because it is not yet over. You know our party, you can have the ticket today and it is gone the next day. We are still waiting for the time when they will paste the final list”, he said.
Another candidate in the constituency also said:
“We are still not sure of what will happen next, so everybody is doing underground moves to protect their tickets and ensure that they are not removed” he said.
A youth leader in the party who did not want his name in print, also confirmed to our reporter that it is not yet uhuru for the Chairmanship and Councilorship candidates as nothing is certain for now.
“Of course, you observed right. They cannot campaign or jubilate excessively yet because they don’t own the ticket. It is our party that owns those tickets and can still be withdrawn from them and given to another person”, he said.
“Some of them still have queries from forgery to other offenses that may still make them lose the tickets and of course, there is still serious politicking in play. That is the nature of our party”, he added.
He however appealed to those aggrieved to wait for their own time and joined those picked as candidates in achieving victory for the party.
One of the six LGA Chairmen also confirmed the dicey situation to THE IMPACT when he told our reporter to wait till next week when the final list of the party’s candidates is released.
“Well, I cannot really tell exactly what the situation is and it will not be proper to be quoted when the party has not released the final list”, he said.
“We were at a meeting yesterday and we are still going back on Saturday. Maybe we may have the final position of the party by then”, he added.
He also said that the party is looking into all the petitions that bother on forged results, criminal allegations and other issues.
