A coalition of aspirants in the recently held All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries has condemned what it termed a “wicked and distracting attempt” to connect the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Dr. Mudashiru Obasa, to the peaceful protests held last week over the party’s primaries.
The group, in a strongly worded statement signed by prominent party figures and released to the press on Wednesday, insisted that the demonstration was a spontaneous expression of dissatisfaction by aspirants and their supporters across Lagos State.
The statement was signed by among others; Hon. Seye Oladejo (Mushin), Hon. Kolawole Taiwo (Ajeromi-Ifelodun), Hon. Noheem Adams (Eti-Osa), Hon. Stephen Ogundipe (Oshodi), Hon. Apata Samuel (Somolu), Hon. David Doherty (Amuwo-Odofin), Hon. Ganiyu Egunjobi (Agege), Hon. Ganiyu Ayuba (Alimosho).
The aspirants, meanwhile, said the protest was not sponsored but was driven by real grievances.
“It is insulting to the intelligence and dismissive of the genuine concerns of thousands of committed APC members and supporters to suggest that they needed to be sponsored to express their frustrations,” the statement said.
The group said the protesters cited issues of alleged manipulation, distortion of results, cheating and disregard for party guidelines in the primaries. They argued that these concerns are not isolated or imaginary, but rather are the frustrations of party faithful who spent time, resources and political capital on the democratic process.
The signatories called out unnamed persons for trying to make Speaker Obasa a scapegoat to trivialise the allegations and divert attention from the need for justice, reconciliation and unity in the APC.
«Rather than tackling the issues at the core of the protest, some people have opted for the easy way out: scapegoating. Such futile efforts are clearly meant to divert public attention from the need for fairness and party cohesion,” they said.
Looking ahead to the 2027 general elections, the aspirants implored party leaders to focus on resolving the outstanding issues from the primaries. They stressed that the strength of the APC is its ability to accommodate divergent views, correct internal deficiencies, and come out stronger through dialogue and fairness.
“The concerns of aggrieved aspirants and their supporters should be addressed, not diverted. Sincerely and urgently addressing these grievances will strengthen confidence in the party’s internal democratic processes and will enable us to approach the forthcoming elections with a united and formidable front,” the statement said.
