9th December, 2014
As the dust raised by the Lagos All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship primary held last Thursday settles, there is the need for the other aspirants who lost to close ranks with the winner and work for the success of the party in the 2015 governorship election.
The Chairman of the State APC Governorship Primary Committee and former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Chief Peter Obadan, declared former Accountant-General of Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, winner of the governorship primary after he defeated 12 other aspirants.
Ambode scored 3,735 votes, Obafemi Hamzat got 1201 votes, Ganiyu Solomon scored 272 votes, 182 votes went to Adeyemi Ikuforiji, Olasupo Shasore got 121 votes, Lekan Pitan scored 112 votes, 69 votes went to Tola Kasali, Tayo Ayinde got 17 votes, while Adekunle Disu and Adekotunbo Wahab scored 7 votes each.
The result clearly shows that Ambode’s choice was an emphatic ‘yes’ by more that 60 per cent of the party’s delegates at the primary. Notwithstanding his landslide victory, the former Lagos Accountant-General in his acceptance speech had exhibited a magnanimous spirit by promising to work with other aspirants and extended his hand of fellowship to them.
As expected in any political battle of such nature, nerves and egos may have been bruised after the outcome as each of the aspirants expected to win the primary. Politics is a game of numbers and the outcome of any contest of this nature is often unpredictable. Unfortunately, only one candidate must emerge as winner and in this instance, Ambode is the party’s choice.
The other aspirants must come to terms with this fact and work together for the good of the party. As observed during the just concluded governorship primary, virtually all the aspirants in the election are men who have contributed immensely to the success story of Lagos State. This is the reason why we believe that a greater Lagos would be possible if these men would work together with Ambode to win the next Lagos State governorship election and sustain the Fashola legacy.
Governance is a team work and all aspirants must realise this. The success recorded by Fashola is a reflection of the rich team of technocrats and administrators who work with him. We believe that the best option for aspirants who lost in the last primaries is to remain within the party and work for the success of the party in the next election.
Governor Babatunde Fashola’s APC-led government in Lagos State has exemplified good governance at all levels and the hope of the people is that his legacy would continue as he bows out in 2015. However, the task of continuing the good governance that Lagos has witnessed in the past fifteen years will depend on the outcome of the 2015 governorship election in the state.