APC Publicity Secretary for Lagos state chapter, Mr Joe Igbokwe
told Eniola Akinkuotu of Punch newspaper in a recent interview that
the party will rule Lagos for 35 more years.
Read more on the interview below!
The Peoples Democratic Party has described as fraudulent, the court
ruling which reaffirmed Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s victory at
the poll. Is it true that your party bribed the judiciary?
Did the PDP have any evidence to present before the tribunal in the
first place? Are they saying they won the election? Are they
newcomers in Lagos? Were they even on the ground in the first
place? Yes, they worked hard to win Lagos with the Subsidy
Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme fraud which they used
in manipulating unemployed youths. Money was extorted from the
youths and they are worse off today. We saw the PDP using an
outlawed organisation like the Oodua People’s Congress, among
others. We saw them tearing our posters and damaging billboards. We
saw their contestants in Alimosho and Agege brandishing guns and
shooting. This was their hard work.
We saw the money that former President Goodluck Jonathan
brought to Lagos when he relocated here briefly before the elections.
He gave out dollars and pounds. So, these were the things they did to
win Lagos. Politics goes beyond this. Lagos PDP thought Jonathan
would win and after winning, they would use soldiers and the police
to intimidate us and chase us out but when Jonathan lost, even my
kinsmen, who were supporting the PDP before, started running to
Bourdillon (Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s home). So, the PDP is not
being truthful. If Jonathan had won that election, the OPC would
have taken over. God, in his infinite mercies, helped us.
Now, the
PDP has lost Abuja and has also lost Lagos and that is why they are
throwing tantrums.
We in the Lagos APC are even angry that the PDP came so close
to defeating us in the last election but we will never allow this again.
We will rule them for the next 30 to 35 years because the people of
Lagos will be impressed with our hard work.
The PDP says Governor Ambode has already started going after its
supporters, especially the traders in Ladipo Auto Spare Parts
Market.
That is not true. Ambode is a Christian and he does not have that kind
of character. He never demolished the market. We in the Igbo
Conscience Group will hold a meeting with the traders and the
Chairman of the Mushin Local Government Council. It is a local
government matter and the traders had had an agreement with the
local government to rebuild the market. Agreements were made and a
Memorandum of Understanding was signed and the traders had been
given ample notice. The market needs a facelift because it is an
eyesore. Apart from the warehouses inside the market, there are
wooden structures outside the market. Is that the kind of place where
you want your customers from Europe to visit? The government
wants the market to conform to the megacity project. So, the
government did not illegally demolish anything.
When we went to the market to campaign, they threw water sachets
at us and that market belongs to the government. That market is
originally meant to be a health centre and if the government wanted to
follow the law to the letter, it would demolish the entire market and
make it a health centre but we do not repay evil with evil. There is no
plan to make life difficult for the people because they did not vote for
us. So, I urge my people in the market to stop playing politics with
this matter. This is a megacity and the market must conform to the
required standard.
Over a month after his inauguration, Ambode has not appointed
commissioners and the PDP has accused him of being slow.
Many governors across the federation have not appointed
commissioners. Even the President has not appointed ministers. So,
why the rush when we have permanent secretaries that can sustain
government ministries? Commissioners are just political heads. They
don’t sign cheques. They only meet with the governor for briefings and
act as a link between the ministries and the governor. Ambode is
energetic and experienced. He has been everywhere. So, whoever
says he is not working is just being economical with the truth. The
PDP has never ruled Lagos before and that is why they don’t
understand it.
The APC had said that if Lagos and the Federal Government were
controlled by the same party, there would be unprecedented change.
Now that there is a crisis in the party due to the National Assembly
issue, will the party be able to deliver on its numerous promises in
Lagos?
Problems are part of life. What happens in everyday business depends
on what you do in the morning. Would you expect the PDP to go
down without a fight? We knew that the PDP would try to pull us
down. But we will overcome what is happening at the National
Assembly.
How can a member of the APC sell out his party for the
Senate Presidency? How could he collude with our enemies? Of
course, we will not allow him get away with such shenanigans? We
will not allow it to stand. So, we believe it is right that we get things
right from the outset. So, we are trying to deal with this challenge.
Once Senator Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu are out, we
will be able to get things running and Lagos will definitely benefit from
the Federal Government. It is good for Lagos to be aligned with the
centre because it needs special attention. It is the place where 80 per
cent of tertiary institution graduates from across the country come to