The political atmosphere in the Kosofe local government area of Lagos State has taken a turbulent turn as leading contenders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Assembly primary election trade fierce accusations following the outcome of the election.
Internal party rifts blew into the open on Thursday as rival camps publicly traded blame over the widespread reports of violence during the APC primary election for Kosofe Constituency II in Lagos
The primary, intended to democratically select the APC flagbearer for the upcoming general elections, descended into chaos mid-morning.
Eyewitnesses reported that armed political thugs invaded multiple voting centers, scattering ballot boxes and intimidating party faithful. In the immediate aftermath, front-running aspirants took to the airwaves and social media to distance themselves from the disruption while explicitly pointing fingers at their opponents.
Supporters of House of Assembly aspirant, Hon. Femi Saheed, alleged that armed hoodlums invaded the primary venue at Ikosi Senior High School and attacked party members and supporters gathered for the exercise.
According to eyewitness accounts made available to journalists by Ademola Ogunsola, party members and supporters had gathered peacefully at the venue, including an adjoining stadium under construction, ahead of the accreditation and counting process.
Ogunsola claimed that supporters of Hon. Saheed turned out in large numbers, including women, youths, community leaders, artisans, and party loyalists.
Reacting also to the incident, Hon. Saheed appealed to his supporters to remain calm and law-abiding, noting that the party leadership was already investigating the matter.
He said: “I am overwhelmed by your show of love, massive support, and comradeship in the face of trials. I never knew I was this loved until yesterday, when you voluntarily came out in numbers despite intimidation and attacks.
“To those who sustained injuries due to the unfortunate attack on the people’s voice and those attacked in their homes, please accept my sincere thoughts. I pray for God’s comfort for you and your families. You are true heroes of democracy.
“With reports circulating about the outcome of the primaries, I urge everyone to remain calm and law-abiding as our great party investigates the incident. I believe democracy shall triumph and the will of the people shall prevail.”
Responding to the allegations, Muritala Seriki denied any involvement in violence and described himself as a peacemaker.
He said he had consistently advised his supporters against engaging in violence during the primary election.
“Our slogan is that people should stand firmly and insist on voting and counting of votes at the venue peacefully. If anybody tries to provoke them, they should not engage in violence,” he said.
“If there is any form of violence, I am sure it is not from my supporters or me.”
Asked whether he was present at the ward where Hon. Saheed voted, Seriki stated that he voted in his own ward, where the exercise was peaceful.
“I am from Ward G in the old ward structure and Ward D in the new ward structure. That is where I voted and it was peaceful despite the mammoth crowd,” he said.
“I cannot speak authoritatively about a place where I did not vote because the election was taking place simultaneously across all wards.”
On allegations linking his supporters to the violence, Seriki maintained that anyone was free to make claims but reiterated that violence should not be encouraged.
“We are all members of the same party and violence should never be encouraged. That has always been my position,” he said.
He also appealed to aggrieved party members to support the eventual candidate of the party, stressing that the APC must remain united ahead of the general election.
“There is no victor and no vanquished. Whoever did not clinch the party ticket should rally round the party’s candidate to ensure victory for the APC,” he added.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass reports that the development at the APC Primary in Kosofe is also present across other parts of Lagos.
The Lagos primaries were overshadowed by controversies following the defeat of actor-turned-lawmaker Desmond Elliot in his bid to return as a member representing Surulere Constituency I in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Barakat Bakare defeated Elliot by a wide margin in a contest marred by allegations of intimidation, exclusion, and procedural irregularities.
Bakare, believed to enjoy the backing of Femi Gbajabiamila, polled 11,355 votes across six wards, while Elliot secured 270 votes.
Elliot rejected the process and withdrew his agents from the venue midway through the exercise.
“When I entered, I discovered that all my supporters were outside. They weren’t being allowed in,” he said.
“The next thing I heard was that in 20 minutes, they were going to stop the process. How can you stop in 20 minutes?”
He alleged that the process was characterised by intimidation and violence.
“Thank God nobody was killed, but a lot of people were injured. There are videos of people going to the hospital,” Elliot added.
In Kwara, the APC cleared all 159 aspirants contesting for tickets to the State House of Assembly after reversing an earlier screening outcome that disqualified more than half of the contenders.
The revised list included Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, who had not initially appeared among the cleared aspirants.
However, some aspirants for the Ifelodun/Offa/Oyun Federal Constituency ticket rejected the outcome of the primary election held on May 16, alleging widespread irregularities.
One of the aspirants, Ademola Samad, accused party officials of conducting a flawed exercise.
“Our major concern is that across the Ifelodun/Offa/Oyun Federal Constituency, no election took place. There were irregularities across the board and protests in several places,” he said.
Another aspirant, Akeem Ayinla Ishola Balogun, faulted the alleged consensus arrangement adopted by the party.
“If this election is to stand, then it must be done democratically. The rules and regulations are there in the party constitution,” he said.
