The Lagos chapters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Action Peoples Party (APP) have expressed strong dissatisfaction with the results of Saturday’s local government elections, rejecting the announced outcomes and alleging widespread irregularities.
According to the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC), the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) secured all 57 chairmanship positions and won 375 out of the 376 councillorship seats.
However, representatives of both the PDP and APP claim the results do not reflect the actual will of the voters.
Speaking on behalf of the PDP, the party’s Deputy Chairman for Lagos West, Sunday Olaifa, condemned the outcome, accusing the APC of manipulating the electoral process to its advantage.
“The PDP in Lagos State rejects in totality the outcome of July 12 council elections in the state. It is nothing but a mockery of democracy going by the manipulations and scenes of inducement of voters that we saw,” Mr Olaifa said.
“For a party that has been in power for over 20 years under various names to depend on rigging before winning a local government election, shows the party is already rejected. APC didn’t win that election.”
“The election didn’t hold in many polling units and results were written. For instance, at Ajao Estate of Isolo LCDAs, out of 36 polling units, till the close of the election, LASIEC officers were not in about 22 polling units. This happened in a few other areas.”
He also noted that the build-up to the election was marred by irregularities, including the disqualification of several opposition candidates.
He emphasized that the process fell far short of established democratic principles and predicted that Lagos residents would reject the APC in the 2027 general elections based on their discontent with the council polls.
Similarly, APP State Chairman Abiola Adeyemi criticized LASIEC for what she described as deliberate disenfranchisement of duly nominated candidates and other serious lapses.
“This election is not free, fair and credible by any standard. It is the worst election ever conducted in Lagos State,” she declared.
“Many candidates were not screened and their candidacy not validated by LASIEC for different flimsy reasons even after those candidates were duly nominated by their political parties.”
“How can an election where many candidates were disqualified by the umpire for no just cause and party logo missing on the ballot be regarded as credible.”
“We complained but the commission turned deaf ears to appeals to accept our candidates. Our logo, APP logo, was not even on the ballot paper in Badagry. LASIEC officers even came late to many polling units.”
She further lamented that the exercise had disappointed many political stakeholders who had hoped for improvements in the electoral process.
In response to the concerns, LASIEC Chairman Justice Bola Okikiolu-Ighile (retd.) acknowledged on Sunday that there were logistical challenges that caused the late arrival of officials and materials in some areas. She noted, however, that efforts were made to promptly address the issues where they arose.
