Lagos Commissioner resigns, says APC shunned merit, competence in choosing Sanwo-Olu

A commissioner under the All Progressives Congress led administration of Akinwumi Ambode in Lagos State; Olawale Wasiu has resigned his membership from the party, and the state’s executive cabinet.

Olawale attributed reasons for his resignation to include, highhandedness by the leadership of the party specifically the irregularities perpetrated by a group of persons within the party which, according to him, may not be abated anytime soon.

The notice of his resignation was contained in a letter addressed to the chairman of the party in the state and seen by Ripples Nigeria.

In the letter dated December 3 2018, the commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources alleged that the party shunned merit in selecting its governorship candidate, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

This he said had left him burdened while recalling the party’s conduct of the October 2018 primary election that was characterised by acts that contradicted the principles of democracy.

The letter reads in part, “I have found it rather difficult to come to terms or rationalize the party’s conduct of the October 2018 primary elections, which were largely characterised by massive voter disenfranchisement, intimidation, violence, undue influence and non-compliance with all known principles of democracy.”

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He alleged that the party violated guidelines in the primary election that led to the emergence of Sanwo-Olu as the governorship candidate of the party.

He said, “In the particular case of the gubernatorial primary, which was conducted using the ‘open ballot’ option in violation of the guidelines of the APC that specified the ‘open-secret ballot’, it is clear to me that the core principles of merit, competence, justice and fairness have been sacrificed by the APC on the altar of political expediency.”

He also expressed disappointment that the party toed this path in its quest to achieve its aim.

“I have struggled for weeks to understand the rationale for the apparent desperation and brigandage brazenly displayed by the party in the various elections. I had never thought such vicious attack could be unleashed on the progress that the state had made in its steady democratic journey.”

He also lamented the use of an arm of government by some powerful group in the party to clamp down on members.

“The indifference of the APC to the continued use of an arm of government by a powerful group within the party, to intimidate critical institutions of democracy in the state, undermines the doctrine of separation of powers, creates an atmosphere of uncertainty and impairs government’s ability to implement policies and programmes that will benefit the majority of the people.”

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