Some members of the Governance Advisory Council of the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress were on Monday divided over the call for the sacking of the party’s chairman, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi.
The GAC is the highest decision-making organ of the APC in Lagos State.
The development followed a protest by some aggrieved party members who stormed the state House of Assembly to call for the sacking of Ojelabi and other party chieftains over what they described as “imposition of candidates” and “anti-grassroots leadership.”
The party chairman, however, faulted the call, describing the accusations as baseless.
The protesters from different local councils in the state held placards with inscriptions such as “Ojelabi Must Go,” “Faleke is a Betrayal,” and “Ojelabi, Mr Voter’s Apathy.”
They called for inclusion, fairness, and an end to what they described as top-down manipulation of local politics.
One of the protest leaders, Ogumba Adetunbosun from Ikorodu, said the protest was borne out of deep dissatisfaction with the way local government elections were conducted and how supervisory positions were being imposed without input from the grassroots.
“We’re concerned politicians from all 57 local councils. What brought us here is the injustice we witnessed in the just-concluded local government elections.
“Chairmen and vice-chairmen have emerged, but when it came to appointing supervisors and secretaries to local governments, we were sidelined. There was no consultation, no dialogue, and that’s not democracy,” Adetunbosun said.
Another protester, Mrs Bola Balogun from Agbado Oke-Odo LCDA, accused top APC leaders of stifling local democracy.
“Governor Sanwo-Olu said we shouldn’t appoint supervisors for (two) months. Why? They want to impose on us.
“We voted for Mr Governor and President Tinubu, not for them to impose appointees on us. Ojelabi and Fanleke are choking the Lagos APC. They’re not listening to the grassroots, and they’re killing the spirit of democracy,” she said.
Speaking on Monday in an interview, a member of GAC, Chief Muraina Taiwo, backed the call for the chairman’s sacking, saying Ojelabi was only loyal to a faction of the party in the state, known as the ‘Justice Forum,’ sidelining the ‘Mandate’ and other factions.
Muraina said he was not initially aware of the protest, but noted that “what I know is that party stalwarts are not happy with the party chairman, most especially. The opinion is that they believe he is a Justice Forum member, and he is not trying to balance things. It is obvious in his dealings that he belongs to a faction.
“Imagine that in Oshodi, I was the one who brought the party there since the days of Lateef Jakande. The party chairman knows my ward. Because he knows my child was in the race, they went to write in my ward that they want a female, and my child had paid for the form. He was aspiring for the position of a councillor. He wanted me to go and lobby stakeholders in the Justice Forum, who are his leaders. I’m not totally for him as chairman, but I’m not a part of this protest. However, his dealings are what is only playing out.”
On the appointment of LG supervisors, the GAC member said it was normal for the governor and party leaders to approve their appointments. “That is how it’s supposed to be. It has been like that for a long time since Jakande’s days.”
Speaking further on alleged sidelining, he said, “Out of all the 57 local governments. Check, the whole council, all Justice Forum’s members, through the state chairman’s directive, took all the slots for councillors. If they don’t change before the 2027 elections, things will be worse.
“He does not have experience. It was with a fight that we took 20 slots for the chairman from them. So if they want us to win the 2027 elections, they should remove that chairman.”
Another GAC member who did not want to be quoted said he was not aware of the call for the chairman’s removal at the GAC level.
“Such a thing was not discussed at any GAC meeting that somebody should be removed. That is not to say that those people making those demands are frivolous; it’s not to say that.
“I’m only responding to your question about whether GAC knows about it. But then we cannot throw away whatever they have said as long as they are members of the APC.
“Firstly, you are just telling me about the protest. I’m hearing it for the first time. There was no meeting where it (chairman’s removal) was discussed. But we will look at the situation as presented. We will look at it and we will deal with it accordingly.
“You can’t hear from one side and conclude; it is the duty of GAC members to make sure that there is peace within the party,” the source said.
The chairman of GAC, Chief Tajudeen Olusi, could not be reached for comments on Monday, as an aide who picked up his call said the elder statesman was not available at the moment.
Chairman kicks
Ojelabi, however, described the claims by the aggrieved members as baseless and lacking substance.
In an interview with our correspondent on Monday, Ojelabi said he was not bothered by the protest, noting that things would no longer be “business as usual” in the party.
He faulted claims that his leadership was not beneficial to the aggrieved members.
“It’s not beneficial to them and we went to elections and won 375 councillors out of 376? We won 57 council chairmen, and it’s not beneficial to them?
“These are people who do not have substance as to what they are doing. It’s not going to be business as usual. We owe it a responsibility to the people of Lagos State to deliver the dividends of democracy.
“They expect that just as the council chairmen were sworn in yesterday (on Sunday), the issue of appointment of supervisors and other things should just follow immediately, and the governor made a pronouncement: ‘Allow these people to settle down. Let them understand the rudiments of governance. Give them the first 30 days to understand what they are inheriting. As you inherit assets, you equally inherit liability.’
“Is it at the state level that we’re going to appoint supervisors and SAs? No. We want the involvement of the leadership of each local government.”
He said the aggrieved members are people who did not have a grassroots base but believe that an imposition is ongoing.
“Did we impose councillors on them? They all emerged from their respective areas. Those who did not fit into the democratic process are the ones fighting back, but I’m not bothered. To the best of my knowledge, we have conducted the best local government election.”
On uniting the aggrieved party members, he said, “It’s a matter of time. By the time the leadership recommends who will be supervisors from their respective local governments, that is what we’re going to adopt. You can’t satisfy human beings.
“The leadership of each local government from the 20 LGAs and 37 LCDAs will recommend them based on the contribution of individuals. That is the mechanism. If you work assiduously for our success, let such people be rewarded. Not ‘because I know Ojelabi, he should appoint me as supervisor.’ No, I can’t be everywhere.
“Whatever they recommend is what we are going to approve. So they are just putting the cart before the horse. The process of appointing supervisors will not come up until the next 30 to 45 days. So that’s it, I’m not bothered. It’s an in-house issue and we will resolve it,” the chairman added.
In a Monday statement, the APC spokesperson in the state, Seye Oladejo, said the party acknowledged and respected the rights of party stakeholders and members to express grievances democratically. “Peaceful protests are a legitimate feature of civic engagement, and we commend those who have conducted themselves calmly and orderly,” he stated.
He, however, said that the selection of cabinet members for the 20 LGs and 37 LCDAs would follow the laid-down rules and the internal party guidelines and the proposition by local leadership of the party after due consultations.
He said, “Please note that the party at the state level only plays an advisory role. The party hereby vehemently denies any allegation to impose nomination on any local government.
“We want to advise interested members to approach their local leadership, who are the custodians of the power to nominate.
“We remain committed to constructive dialogue to review concerns and disputes to ensure fair outcomes in line with party values.
“We appeal for constructive participation and plead with the protesters to channel their concerns through official party organs.”
Source: The Punch
