By Olanrewaju Adesanya
A Non-political and non-profitmaking Group in Lagos State, The Lagos Shepherd (TLS), has cautioned the State’s Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat against complaining if the consensus arrangement in the All Progressives Congress (APC) which he publicly espoused doesn’t favour him in the 2027 general elections.
In a statement issued on Thursday which was signed by Kazeem Abaranje, its Protem Chairman, and titled ‘Dr. Hamzat, We’ll Not Forget!, the group quoted a statement credited to Hamzat while addressing APC members at the party Secretariat on Wednesday.
During the meeting, Hamzat said “Let’s do it the way we have been doing. It is going to be a consensus. We will apportion things to one another.”
Reacting to the statement, the group said “Above is a statement credited to the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat”.
“He said this while addressing APC members at the party secretariat in Lagos on Wednesday, ahead of the primaries for local government elections this weekend. The event was widely reported by major national dailies. So, he was not quoted out of context”.
“Dr. Hamzat was basking in the euphoria of the moment because the current situation, which ceded many positions to him and his group, paid off, hence the statement, claiming it was the party’s tradition”.
“Unfortunately, those words are significant “notes for file” that will ring true in a couple of years from now when another election cycle is due and his loyalty to the party leadership will be brought to a huge test”.
“If in the lead-up to the 2027 elections, the party decides “to do it the way it’s been doing it” and settles for a consensus, other than himself in the choice of its next governorship candidates, there would not be room for anyone or group to blackmail the leadership”.
“He would be reminded of those words above in BOLD immutable PRINTS! This is not to dispute his claims, but to properly put him on the record for espousing such a laudable party tradition”.
“What we would not do is accept those words just because they are convenient and suit his current craving as a political leader in the state. We will make sure they apply truly as the timeless tradition of the party that has functioned and yielded results over the years”.
