Protesters storm Lagos APC secretariat, demand cancellation of Kosofe Reps primary

Stakeholders drawn from across Kosofe Federal Constituency of Lagos State on Thursday led aggrieved residents and members of All Progressives Congress (APC) to the party Secretariat on ACME Road, Agidingbi to protest the outcome of the primary that produced Mrs Kafilat Ogbara as the party’s standard-bearer for the House of Representatives seat, come 2023.

The protesters led by Loogun Segun Oyekunle Sunday Jegede, APC Chairman, Ikosi- Isheri LCDA; Comrade Olawale Michael, who led the party youths in Kosofe, among others, expressed disappointment as they maintained that no primary was held to pick Ogbara, just as they insisted that the member, representing the constituency, Hon. Rotimi Agunsoye should be handed the party’s ticket, being the one that had served their interest for the past seven years.

The protesters, who stormed the Secretariat as early as 8 am, and still occupying the road at the time of filing this report, as they were not allowed into the party office premises, carried placards with various inscriptions such as: “We say no to fake primary,” “We say no to selection in Kosofe,” “No primary in Kosofe, “No primary election in Kosofe, give us our mandate.”

Others are: “Give us our mandate, we are the grassroots, we own power of votes, give our mandate back in Kosofe,” and “Accept duly elected delegates in Kosofe,” among others.

Speaking with newsmen, Loogun Jegede said they were at the party office to protest the outcome of the purported primary which produced Mrs Ogbara as the APC Reps candidate for the 2023 poll, declaring that no primary was held that very day to justify such.

According to him, no electoral officer even showed up for the exercise, expressing surprise that despite that, the result started trending on social media that Ogbara was the winner.

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The party chieftain, while demanding that the exercise be cancelled and a new primary held for the sake of equity, justice and fairness, maintained that no primary election was held in the constituency as being portrayed, alleging that the delegate list that was approved was jettisoned when some leaders were doing what he termed their so-called selection of the candidate.

Jegede said that the resolution of the elders and leaders in the constituency was that there should be a rerun where the original delegate list would be used to select the people’s choice.

“As I speak now, no election was conducted in Kosofe Federal Constituency. We want a rerun and the leader should make available the list of delegates submitted to the party secretariat.

“We have a good case for appeal. This brazen injustice can’t be allowed to go unchallenged. Nobody saw the purported delegate list they used for the selection,” he said.

Also speaking, Osobu equally maintained that on primary was held in Kosofe Federal Constituency concerning APC’s flag bearer for the House of Representatives, even as he said there was no time the aspirants agreed to choose a consensus candidate contrary to the lies being spread by some people.

He vowed every lawful means available would be deployed by the constituents to reclaim their mandate back.

“Hon. Rotimi Agunsoye (ROT) has done well for the people of Kosofe and I don’t think this is what some people should use to repay his kind gesture.

“We are party men. I am sure Asiwaju Bola Tinubu believes in justice and we know that the right thing would be done. We are very sure of justice,” Osobu said.

Comrade Michael, in his submission, said the youths in the constituency were saying no to injustice, impunity and imposition, adding that Hon. Agunsoye was their mandate.

“We voted the delegates and they went ahead to change the list of the delegates behind our back and that’s a slap on the youths,” he said.

“What are they thinking of the youths,” he queried.

“This is an injustice to the masses, especially the people of Kosofe Federal Constituency. This man has empowered so many people and no man has done that before him. He did 48 borehole water projects and gave out over 240 minibuses, and over 200 tricycles. The youths of Kosofe say no to injustice and imposition. Agunsoye ROT is our mandate,” he added.

In her remark, Asabi Muhammed, who is representative of Arewa women in Kosofe, warned the leadership that failure to return Agunsoye may spell doom for the APC in the area in the forthcoming general election.

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