It initially looked like Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode was going to be rolled over by the political machinery of the man who made him politically, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, national leader of the APC and the man who, over the last 12 years, has almost solely decided who takes the seat of power in Alausa, the powerhouse of the country’s commercial capital.
Lagos is the biggest prize in the country’s political space, with the highest number of voters, the most buoyant state economy and the richest treasury among Nigeria’s 36 states. He who controls Lagos, can largely decide the political direction of the country. Tinubu had yielded that power for more than 16 years but that control is now about to face its biggest challenge. The outcome could mar or make his political future and his rumoured ambition to contest for the Presidency in 2023, at the end of the second term tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari.
What looked like a minor fight between Tinubu and his political protégé’ Ambode has snowballed into a full blown political war that could easily end the iron clad control the All Progressives Congress (APC) has had over the state. After being put under pressure to drop his second term ambitions, Ambode came out firing on Sunday against his party, the APC, its national leadership and opponents in the party primary that takes place today, October 1.
Ambode did not mention any name in the several allegations that he made against his opponent in today’s primary contest across the 245 wards and 20 local government areas of the state. But he is standing against Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for whom a third aspirant, Obafemi Hamzat, has stepped down for. Ambode has also been put under pressure, allegedly from Tinubu to step down for Sanwo-Olu who now looks like the party’s anointed candidate.
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At what he called a ‘World Press Conference’ yesterday Ambode not only expressed his determination to contest for the primary, waving aside pressure from party leaders to step down, but also insisted that the aspirant the party is pushing is not a fit and proper person to govern Lagos.
‘This aspirant was rehabilitated at Gbagada General Hospital; the records are there” Ambode said.
Apparently angered by the pressure put on him in the last few days, the governor said he has so far refrained from replying to campaign of calumny and disparaging of his person on the social media by those opposed to his second term ambition, since the last two to three weeks, in the belief that it was a family affair which could be resolved.
“For the other aspirants, we welcome competition but again, we will not, on good assurance allow us to fritter away opportunities that our great party has and then allow the opposition to win Lagos in next year’s poll. If we allow the opportunity before our party to fritter away, we will be jeopardising the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket on which I am 100 percent standing for. But other aspirants cannot deliver the ticket for the party.”
There are reports, which we were unable to confirm, that Ambode is being encouraged by the Presidency to take on the Tinubu political machinery in Lagos state. Sources have told the media that the Presidency is not behind the attempts to deny a second term ticket to Ambode fearing that such a denial would have a negative impact on Buhari’s chances in Lagos state during February 2019 presidential elections.
Ambode said that the party leaders and party members have been misled to understand that his opponent in APC primary is a better candidate.
“I have done everything in the last three years and half to serve people selflessly. This particular aspirant has been arrested for spending fake American Dollar in a night club and was detained for months.”
“He also knows that he does not have the competence to do what he is being propelled to do. We know our leadership should have a rethink because the truth is this. I will not stand here, on the mandate of Lagos State residents and allow our great party, APC to fritter away that opportunity to put in somebody that opposition will easily kick-out because of credibility. So I appeal to all our leaders, they should have a rethink.”
But Ambode also went on to express doubts about the credibility of the party’s primaries that holds today.
“As we speak, the APC national secretariat has already sent in Electoral Committee to Lagos. But I am yet to receive the guideline. I am an aspirant in tomorrow’s (today) competition. I believe strongly that preparation is on-going. There are two things we need to iron out. I believe the APC chairman will be able to correct some of these things that we have noticed. We are committed progressives. We are committed to the outcome of the primaries. We are committed to the tenets and principles of our great party. But what we will not accept is to disenfranchise millions of people we have been able to bring into the fold of the APC in the last three and half years. What we hear is that there is a register that is being brought to the state. The register only includes members that registered in 2014. What about millions of supporters that we have brought in from 2015 to date?” The governor queried.
Ambode chose to fight after he failed to get the backing of the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), the highest decision making organ of Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to stand as the party’s candidate in the 2019 governorship elections.
The GAC, which is chaired by Tinubu, instead asked the governor to step down and went ahead to endorse Sanwo-Olu at a meeting held on Saturday, 22 September.
The 12-member GAC met in Tinubu’s house in Ikoyi with Osinbajo in attendance, where they took the decision to adopt Sanwo-Olu in Monday’s primary election.
The primaries has already by shifted twice, first from Saturday, September 29, to Sunday, September 30, and finally Monday, October 1, 2018.
Announcing the outcome of the GAC meeting to anxious party faithful at the APC secretariat, Ikeja, Anthony Adefuye, secretary to the GAC said that the meeting which commenced at 10am, ended after several hours of deliberation.
“There was a GAC meeting, which was attended by the Vice President, Osinbajo, majority leader of the House of representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker, House of Assembly, Mudasiru Obasa, and others were at the meeting.
“This meeting was chaired by our national leader, Tinubu. This is a meeting that we started at 10am. And we couldn’t finish early. After the meeting, I have been mandated by the GAC to announce to you that the gubernatorial primary earlier scheduled for September 30th, has been shifted to Monday October 1st.
“Also, the GAC was informed by Obafemi Hamzat of his decision to graciously stepped down and endorsed Jide Sanwo-Olu.”
“GAC has endorsed Babajide Sanwo-Olu as its preferred candidate ahead of the primaries,” he added.
Adefuye said that Tinubu had earlier planned to address the members but couldn’t leave his resident “because various organs of the party had decided to meet him on other issues.”
But unnamed sources have told the media that Osinbajo was not part of the agreement to deny Amdode a second term ticket in Lagos State. Osinbajo is said to have instead urged the party to support the governor for a second term to avoid the fate that almost befell the party in Osun state where they almost lost the governorship election. There are also unconfirmed speculations that the main opposition PDP could offer Ambode the party’s governorship ticket if he is denied a return ticket by the APC.
But Ambode’s outburst could trigger an impeachment move against him sources have told BusinessDay. Already, 36 members of the 40-member state house of Assembly have endorsed Sanwo-Olu as their preferred candidate in the party’s primaries. This exposes the governor to an impeachment move from the House of Assembly. There are also indications that not all of the governor’s cabinet are behind his decision to go to battle against Tinubu. Ambode could spend the next few days fighting for survival instead of a second term while opposition PDP waits eagerly on the sideline hoping that it could reap from the current disarray in the camp of the man that has dominated Lagos politics since 1999.
JOSHUA BASSEY
