The reports emanating from the camp of the failed chairmanship aspirant Idris Aregbe, should be held with a pinch of salt. Idris Aregbe falsely claimed that the APC primaries did not hold anywhere in Surulere.
However, this is just a desperate attempt to gather public sympathy after the loss he experienced in the wards where primaries were successfully held. Idris Aregbe is not the State Party Chairman, and as such cannot make such pronouncements.
For the records, primaries were successfully held in five wards out of a total nine wards in Surulere, the reasons for the primaries not holding in the remaining four wards were divergent.
In ward E1 Ojuelegba which happens to be a volatile zone in Surulere, primaries were not held there as a result of the killing of two people as a result of a cult clash which the area is notorious for.
The cult kingpin of that area popularly known as Kayode Thomas aka Igimu and his elder brother Babatunde Thomas another known cultist, are known to unleash terror in the Ojuelegba area whenever their is any public event.
In an attempt to solidify their chances, Babatunde Thomas aligned with Idris Aregbe who is believed to have the financial resources to mobilize thugs and cults. At the end, the rival cult groups in the area did not feel comfortable with the shenanigans of the two occultic brothers and decided to work against them.
The party hierarchy ensured adequate security was made available at all ward venues.
Unfortunately, this did not deter the cult groups from engaging themselves and the party hierarchy was forced to suspend the primaries.
In wards F1 and F2, the major reason for the suspension of the primaries exercise is traced to the inadequacies of the party register list which failed to capture a significant number of eligible members. Especially in F2, the ward where Idris Aregbe registered as party member, the party register provided disenfranchised a lot of party members, hence it would have been unfair to proceed with the primaries.
Among notable individuals disenfranchised as a result of the inadequate party register provided were the present Secretary to the Surulere Local Government, Prince Muiz Dosunmu as well as the sitting councilor, Honourable Ajibola Ajala. This seemed like a premeditated attempt, as Idris Aregbe was seen dancing immediately it was announced that the primaries will not hold.
In ward G1, elections could not hold as a result of the gross irregularities being practiced by the cohorts of the outgoing local government chairman, Tajudeen Ajide, who is a staunch promoter of Idris Aregbe, the officers drafted to the ward were seen giving two ballot papers to each electorate in a bid to inflate the votes of Idris Aregbe.
The irregularity was spotted in addition to the emergence of large swarth of strangers and Non-residents of the ward. The official who was culpable in the shady arrangement Alhaja Idẹra is a known supporter of the outgoing chairman, and when she was asked to account for her untoward conduct, she feigned ignorance saying it was a negligible mistake. Party leaders within the ward such as Hon Kabir Lawal, a two-term state legislator vehemently opposed the illegal procedure, as a result large rejection of the illegal procedure guided by Mr. Moshood Ajide, it became impossible to continue with the primaries.
Furthermore, primaries were peaceful in five wards. In ward E, Idris managed a meagre 69 votes while his opponent, Hon Sulaimon Bamidele Yusuf polled 901 votes. In ward F3, Idris polled 66 votes while while SYB polled 226 votes. In ward G, Idris polled 35 votes while SYB polled 294 votes. In ward G2, Idris had 46 votes while SYB polled 842 votes. In the fifth ward, G3 Idris polled 28 votes while Sule polled 205 votes.
Anyone that can do proper arithmetic can decipher the voice of the Surulere APC members from these numbers.
For validation of these figures, any interested persons can reach out to the party hierarchy at the local government and state for result sheet records and videos. The general public should not be misled by false claims made by faceless groups saying the primaries did not hold anywhere in Surulere. More importantly, Hon Sule Yusuf condemn the violence and disruption of peace in few wards in Surulere and he urged the security agencies to thoroughly investigate the circumstances behind the event with a view to provide justice. APC Primary Election was held and the incumbent Vice Chairman in Surulere, Suleiman Yusuf roundly defeated his opponents.
THE YOUTHS, WOMEN, ELDERS OF SURULERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT HAVE SPOKEN IN FAVOUR AN HOME BASED, RELATABLE AND GRASSROOT PERSONALITY – SULEIMAN BAMIDELE YUSUF
Signed
AWALOKAN – IJOBA MEKUNU CAMPAIGN MEDIA TEAM
