Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, has insisted that the process that made him the flagbearer of the party was fair.
The former commissioner defeated Governor Akinwunmi Ambode at the primaries.
In a chat with Thisday, Sanwo-Olu said he won the open primary election because he earned it.
His words: “Party members freely chose the flag bearer of their choice. The party in Lagos and at the highest level provided an opportunity through direct primaries for states and aspirants in various elective posts to emerge.
“The party in Lagos followed the guidelines as provided for by the National Working Committee of APC. It was an open, free, fair and transparent primary election that brought me out as the candidate. The party members are happy that they had a say in who is their candidate.
“The good thing now is we have united the party members across all the divides behind a common goal and objective which is to win the election next week Saturday and to also win all our House of Assembly seats in Lagos.
“Yes, as a sitting Governor he has the right to seek re-election just like any party member cannot be banned from aspiring to the same office. The Governor exercised his right. What usually happens is that people say candidates are handpicked.
“But in this case, the party decided to throw the contest open. The party said that every card-carrying member must have a say, so we went through a direct primary. It has not been done since 1992. So over a million people voted and I got the highest number of votes.”
Asked if he was a man of his own, the candidate said: “At 53? Certainly, I am and I will be my own man as governor. This same question of if I will be my own man is a reference to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu who is our leader.
“It is important to say that Asiwaju has never had any negative influence on his two successors. He is always about the development of Lagos. If anything else, he pushes us to be better than what we have done in Lagos.
“He is my leader and a father figure. I will be lying if I say I will not take advice from him. I will seek his wise counsel and guidance, just like I will take advice from Alhaji Lateef Jakande and anyone who has had the privilege of leading the state from when Lagos was created 52 years ago.”
On comment by Jimi Agbaje, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate that was in Tinubu’s bondage, Sanwo-Olu replied: “Nobody is in bondage in Lagos. This man you’re talking about comes out every four years to contest as governor, yet he talks about freedom.
“Let me ask, where Mr. Jimi Agbaje was when his party held Lagos State revenue for over two years. So there was no cry of freedom in Lagos when the PDP led Federal Government failed to grant approvals for developmental projects.
“There was no cry of freedom when Lagos had issues with securing the right of way for Redline rail project from Agbado to CMS for six years and PDP refused to grant it. There was no cry of Freedom when Lagos was agitating for a special status for sixteen years.
“But Agbaje is suddenly talking about Freedom for a Lagos that has grown from borrowing money to pay salary in 1999 to a fifth largest economy in Africa. That’s unfair on the State and its people.”
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