Work Hard to Validate Our Mandate, Sanwo-Olu Charges APC Chairmanship, Councillorrship Contenders
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmanship and councillorship candidates in the upcoming July 24 Local Government Elections to work hard and validate the party’s dominance in the state.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ parley held at the State House, Marina, on Tuesday, Sanwo-Olu presented the APC flag to all party candidates and appealed to party leaders and candidates to showcase the party’s strength in Lagos.
The governor, who appreciated party leaders and loyalists on behalf of President Bola Tinubu, called for unity and support for the party’s candidates in the polls.
“We must work the way we ought to do it, showcase and validate our strength in Lagos, and ensure that APC is a party to be proud of. Knock all doors and seek votes,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu emphasized that every election is local and that candidates should not take anything for granted. “Go and work, engage with the people, touch the people, let the people see those they want to vote for,” he added.
The governor also urged candidates to be fair to all interests and cautioned against segregation and caucus.
He noted that the party is united, despite different political affiliations and outcomes of the primaries, and that all aggrieved members should take the party’s decision as supreme.
Chairman of Lagos State Governance Advisory Council, Tajudeen Olusi, commended stakeholders for their unwavering support and urged APC candidates to earn a good name when they get to office. “Don’t pursue your purse, pursue a good name. In one year, you can do remarkable things for people. Do things to elevate and sell APC more to the people at the grassroots. Do it well,” Olusi said.
The Lagos APC Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi, appreciated the roles played by the party leadership in reconciling all aggrieved members and said that APC candidates would ride on the shoulder of the governor to emerge winners.
He urged each elected official to reside within their respective council areas and warned that the party would sanction any chairman or councillor who resided outside his or her local government.
Ojelabi also urged market leaders, artisans, professional groups, ethnic nationalities, religious groups, and other stakeholders in the state to cast their votes in support of APC candidates.
The Lagos State House of Assembly Deputy Speaker, Mrs. Lasbat Meranda, appreciated the party’s loyalists for their impressive turnout and urged them to put their grudges behind them and work for the party’s victory. She also urged women to mobilize votes for the APC.
The governor’s wife, Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, said that the power of every woman was in her voice and urged all women in the state to rally support for the party’s candidates. “Don’t allow APC to be put to shame. Let us mobilize votes for the APC. We must use our votes to better our lot and improve our condition in the country,” she said.
The stakeholders’ parley was attended by party leaders, candidates, and loyalists, who all pledged to work together to ensure the party’s victory in the upcoming elections.
