By Babatunde Kaka
Hon. Segun Agbaje, an All Progressive Congress chieftain and Lagos State House of Assembly aspirant, has denied rumors of his defection to another political party in the state.
The two-term Chairman of Epe Local Government, who frowned at the “winner takes all” practice that has become the norm in the party, disclosed this in an interview with Eko Hot Blog on the sidelines of the party meeting held on Sunday 11th September 2022 at Lagos Road Epe.
Justifying his stance on his perceived defection despite the irregularities he raised to party officials and INEC officials during the primaries, Hon Agbaje stated that his loyalty is unshaken and that he could not have conceived the idea based on utmost respect for party supremacy, the leadership of the party at the state and national levels, as well as the loyalty of his die-hard supporters.
“I want to use this medium to all party members and people of Epe Local Government that I remain a party man and my loyalty remains the same to the APC. It’s my party, it’s our party so, all rumours that have to do with leaving the party are false. I love my party and I will continue to support and promote the party in Epe, Lagos State and Nigeria as a whole.”
Speaking further, Hon Agbaje disclosed that the trend of “winner takes it all” is not a noble practice and must be addressed by all means for the promotion of intra-part cohesion, peace and unity that has existed in the political family before the primaries and other elective positions.
“This is not the first time of having issues with “winners take it all” but I believe that there should be a reward system and people that matter in the party must not be neglected. This issue must be addressed so that we would all come together as a team to promote the party and ensure that the party’s values are well guided.”
“The notion of people losing interest and not believing in the party any longer must be addressed. Unfortunately, everybody believes that once you get a ticket or you become a party candidate, that is all. They believe that once I’m the party candidate, everything is all over but the people’s mentality is already changing and they want a fair share of the benefits”
Hon Agbaje disclosed that he and party loyalists have become vulnerable to interests from other political parties in the state, but they remain steadfast in their commitment and dedication to the success of the party, which he claims was built from the ground up to its current level of transformation.
He added that meeting with top echelons of the party during the week would provide a viable opportunity to present the issues raised by his thronging supporters for further action.
“I have two different meetings in Lagos concerning issues of House of Assembly elections in Lagos and Epe and at the end of the day, I will get back to my supporters, lovers and every other member of the APC in Epe”
“But let me tell you clearly that I am not going to leave the party, I am going to work for the party but the recognition and reward system is important”
“We’ve worked for the party in the past, and at the end of the day, there’s no reward system anywhere, so we’ve continued to do this for the party while others take the credit.” “Having to wait another four years before you see people moving around to engage you is becoming an anomaly,” he said.
In addition, Hon Agbaje urged his throngs of supporters and party loyalists to exercise their civic rights by punctually attending and participating in party activities and regular ward meetings, emphasizing that all forms of intimidation, oppression, and threats that are contrary to the party’s principles must be resisted, because the party belongs to all, regardless of loyalty to aspirants.
“In most cases, party members who have supported one aspirant against the other are always divided which is not a healthy practice for our democracy. We have instances where those who are humbled in the electoral contest gets sidelined from equitably sharing party benefits and goodies which are not in line with the party principles”
“We belong to the same party; are we saying that all party members must support only one candidate in any election? No, and that is the beauty of the party. If not, these people would be forced to consider leaving because there is only one person in charge, with no internal competition or healthy rivalry in the party. If there is a level playing field and someone emerges, there should be a kind of reconciliation that brings everyone back on board without discrimination,” he said.
Eko Hot Blog reports that earlier in his address, his throngs of supporters who stormed the meeting venue were ecstatic about the Chieftain’s decision to launch an empowerment program for the elderly, women, and youths in October. This, he stated, was his primary concern for the benefit of his supporters and the party’s overall progress.
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