The Electoral Committee of the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has said candidates for the Lagos Mainland Local Government Area and the Yaba Local Council Development Area will emerge by consensus.
This followed the failure of the candidates to emerge on Saturday at the primaries conducted by the party in Ikeja to produce candidates for the July 12 local government elections in Lagos.
Of the 20 LGAs and 37 LCDAs, the party was able to produce 55 candidates on Saturday among the about 500 party members who aspired for the chairmanship seats at various councils.
Speaking in a telephone interview with The PUNCH on Sunday, the chairman of the electoral committee, Babatunde Ogala (SAN), said the party had been able to resolve candidacy for the remaining two councils.
“By the grace of God, we have resolved the issues, and our candidates are emerging by consensus.
“It will be by consensus of the members, and I can assure you that there will be no protest,” Ogala told The PUNCH.
Speaking on how the committee, and by extension, the party, was able to handle the numerous aspirants to produce 57 candidates, he said, “We engaged, and many people withdrew. We negotiated the exit, and the aspiring party members respected the party, and to help the party, they also made sacrifices.”
He said the candidates for the remaining two councils would be announced soon.
“You will see our full list in the next couple of hours,” he said on Sunday evening.
The PUNCH had yet to get the list as of the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, sources within the party maintained that the aspirants in the areas were not yielding to consensus amid a marathon meeting of the party.
“They were in a marathon meeting on Sunday. Aspirants are not agreeing on consensus. (But) The party leaders don’t want them to vote.
“(President Bola) Tinubu already warned them not to impose,” a member of the party privy to the developments said on condition of anonymity.
Some aggrieved members of the party had on Saturday protested against what they described as the imposition of candidates in the Lagos Mainland LGA and Yaba LCDA.
Opposing the primary methods, the aggrieved APC members held a protest on Apapa Road in Ebute Metta, and they later took the demonstration to Arise TV on Victoria Island.
At the Saturday primary, no election or consensus was reached for the two aforementioned councils, while candidates emerged via consensus, and some others were selected through voting by delegates for the other 55 councils.
The spokesperson for the APC, Seye Oladejo, denied the alleged imposition of candidates, a position that was also echoed on Sunday by the electoral committee chairman, Ogala.(Punch)
