*Election in Agege I prone to violence from Speaker – Jubril
*Prove your allegation if you have evidence – Obasa
*My boss’ ticket won based on popularity – Musbau Razak
*Jubril keeps mum, says time not ripe to talk
By BASHIR ADEFAKA, Editor
Jubril Camp: “The candidate is Hon. Jubril Abdulkareem. Don’t forget his time as Executive Chairman of Agege Local Government remains the best performing grassroots administration so far. He is the person that the people want but Obasa has emerged through his own way and the people are not complaining because they have their Plan B…So, we are calling for adequate security except the government wants us to lose confidence in them,” he said.
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Obasa Camp: “We, on our own, are not fighting anybody and we are not angry with anybody. After everything, my boss has extended olive branch to all of them. It is only him (Jubril) who will never accept truce.”
All Progressives Congress (APC) members loyal to the Honourable Jubril Abdulkareem, former Chairman, Agege Local Government Area of Lagos State, have cried out over possible violence during the coming election as, according to them, say the desperation on the part of the Speaker will not allow free, fair and credible election in the area.
Agege Constituency I is the political base of Obasa, who is currently the Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly.
The politicians, who made their concerns known at the campaign office of the former council boss, are saying since Obasa’s people used threat of guns against supporters of their leader, Jubril, in the buildup to the last party primary elections to emerge as winner of the constituency ticket to contest the 2019 Lagos State House of Assembly election, that there is more likelihood that his desperation, even if the people ask their choice candidate to contest in other party, would go to the extent of fomenting violence to ensure the people’s will does not reign supreme.
They therefore called for intensive security presence and particularly asked for neutrality on the part of the security agents as, according to them, the fear that the Speaker is in power is not far from thought of manipulation.
The Honourable Jubril Abdulkareem’s camp spoke just as Obasa’s camp, reacting to their allegation of possible Obasa-sponsored violence at election, slammed them for raising false alarm.
Also reacting to the allegation in a telephone chat with The DEFENDER on Tuesday, Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Mr. Musbau Razak, said it was not possible for his boss who won the constituency ticket based on popularity to have plans of violence in his mind in ensuring that the election does not hold in peace.
Razak accused Jubril and his camp of raising false alarm and advised them to approach the necessary quarters to lodge complaints in case they observe anything they fell would cause violence at the coming election instead of rushing to the media, adding that Obasa is not Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and that he is not police who conducts elections and provides security, respectively.
Speaking in the allegations, one of the complainants, Mr. Monsur Taiwo, who is an APC executive member in the area, said, “What is happening in our constituency now is that the people’s choice was not person that emerged at the primaries and the people have asked their choice candidate to stay on with their mandate to go to the state Assembly.”
Asked who the people’s choice was and how he would go to Assembly when he is not candidate from primaries, the APC exco member said, “That is not difficult for the people since everything about democracy is people-based. The candidate is Hon. Jubril Abdulkareem. Don’t forget his time as Executive Chairman of Agege Local Government remains the best performing grassroots administration so far. He is the person that the people want but Obasa has emerged through his own way and the people are not complaining because they have their Plan B,” he said.
Another member of APC in the place told The DEFENDER that, “What is happening in Lagos but which is not clear to outsider is that, we are currently like One House divided against itself in the sense that we have a Leader in Asiwaju Bola Tinubu but whose followers are scattered on two camps: the Asiwaju and Buhari camps. This is reality. While Buhari has tried not to allow the effect of both camps disagreement reflect in any of our activities, the Asiwaju boys in Lagos are not of the same view. They are making sure that none of Buhari Boys e.g. Fashola, Joke Orelope, Opeifa, Jubril Abdulkareem would be allowed to emerge. That is what is happening.”
Where things stand
He agreed with Taiwo about a Plan B but expressed concerns that, “Since in Agege over sometimes now, the people’s will has never been allowed to count. But the people are insisting and they are meeting to decide on their Plan B and so will decide on what to do soonest before INEC deadline on candidate list submission expires. This is where we fear because these guys who had used thugs threatening us with guns because of this matter will want to go worse by not allowing the people’s votes to count at polling boots across the constituency during election. So, we are calling for adequate security except the government wants us to lose confidence in them,” he said.
Jubril keeps mum
Asked to comment, Honourable Jubril did not talk, saying it was not time to talk.
Obasa won his ticket based on popularity – CPS
The Speaker’s CPS, Mr. Musbau Razak in what he called his own position on the allegation of anticipated violence said it was wrong for anybody to say that Obasa woujld not allow free and fair election is Agege Constituency I during the coming House of Assembly election in Lagos State.
His words: “My position to their allegation is, let them prove it. If they have anything, they know the appropriate quarters to go to; not running to the media, not running up and down. As far as I am concerned, it is the person that thinks about doing something, examine that person, that has the mind to be wicked. Because I do not see any reason or motive for Obasa to want to go into violence. Is Jubril more popular than him. A ticket holder will now go into violence, to do what?
“So, that was why I said when they talk to us, we should ask them questions: ‘What is the motif for Obasa to want to go into violence with anybody.
“Again, my position is this, Obasa is not contemplating violence chaos with anybody. He is busy with his campaign and preparations for his election. Nothing more, nothing less! So, if anybody has any grievances, he or she knows where to go. That is just the thing.
“To say that Obasa would not allow free and fair election is wrong. Is Obasa INEC? That is number one. It is the duty of INEC to organize election and Obasa is not the security agent who will provide security. He has not stopped anybody from seeking political relevance anywhere, even in APC.
“All of these they are doing is face saving, just to raise false alarm and even what he is doing is anti-party. You can’t stay in APC and start sponsoring somebody in other party. It is anti-party. Jubril should know that because he should be more than experienced enough. So, whatever he likes, let him do with his political career. Nobody is stopping him.
“My boss is busy with his campaign and how to move Lagos forward. Jubril’s utterances and others are just minor issues. If he is willing to sponsor candidate in other party, he is at liberty to do so if he believes it is the right thing to do because, we contested primary and somebody won it and got the party’s ticket. For them to now be telling us that that person who won the ticket will not allow election to hold peacefully, is Obasa organizer of election? And it is the duty of the Police to provide security.
“So, what is this about saying Obasa will cause violence. That is their own area. That is what they used to do and so they think it is everybody that does same thing. They believe that, ‘This thing I do, somebody else may want to do it against me’. That is what is happening.
“Obasa is busy with his campaign. He is not candidate of just Agege I candidate. He is candidate of the whole of Lagos and so, all he is doing covers the whole of Lagos. That is it. So, he is less concerned about all they say and, definitely, the issue of violence does not even arise in his own matter at all. He who lays an allegation, the onus lies on him to prove that allegation. I put it to Honourable Jubril to come out and prove that Obasa will not allow violence-free election. He should not be raising false allegation up and down. He should not be doing that.
“If you have any inkling that somebody will happen which will cause violence, you should know where to go. Not on the pages of the newspaper; not to the media. Go to the security agents. There are places where you can report all these. So, by going to the media shows there is mischief on their minds and it shows that they are raising false alarm. If he has all the evidences and facts, let him to the security agents and lodge his complaints.
“We, on our own, are not fighting anybody and we are not angry with anybody. After everything, my boss has extended olive branch to all of them. It is only him (Jubril) who will never accept truce. Is Taofeeq Adaranijo not working with us, despite the fact that he didn’t get the ticket for the House of Reps? He should not be saying that ‘I must do this, it is only me and must be me all the times.’ No.
“Election is about contesting. Out of three people, only one person will win. When one person wins, what is expected of the other two is to support that person. But his is not like that. In truth, we have nothing about violence against anybody.”
