Kunle Adelabu
Otunba Olasunkanmi Tijani, the Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ikorodu North Local Government Area (LGA), who also doubled as the party divisional chairman, has confirmed that the incumbent Vice Chairman of the council, Hon. Ola Ameen Apanisile, popularly called, ‘Apa’, has been endorsed as the flagbearer of the party in the forthcoming council elections.
The party chairman, who himself was an aspirant until he pulled out of the contest a few days ago, confirmed the development to THE IMPACT at his office on Tuesday, while responding to our reporter on the kind of chairman he is expecting to succeed the outgoing council boss, Builder Adeola Banjo, who will be completing his tenure after about nine years; first as Executive Secretary and later as elected chairman.
He said that the party’s executives decided on the consensus candidate on Monday, after considering all the aspirants and resolved at Hon. Apanisile as its candidate.
“The man on the way out has characters which we cherish so much. There is no way that there will not be a dispute between the government and the party. He cannot do all that we ask of, because of paucity of funds.
“Secondly, because of the human nature, we will always cross one another’s line. But this is a man that is willing to listen. Where he is wrong, he will accept and that shows readiness to work in harmony with the party, that is the kind of man that I am looking at. One who is ready to listen to advice. You can’t know it all.
“This is a man who always meets with the party leaders at least once in a month to tell us what he has been able to do, and what he plans to do. He is giving us an opportunity to rub minds with him. The next man must be of the same character”, Otunba Tijani said.
The party chairman added:
“He alone cannot be the government, you must come to the party and discuss with its leadership because we are the people that the grassroots will talk to. It is possible for anybody to see me ten times in a week but it may not be possible to meet with the council chairman.
“That is the kind of the chairman that I am expecting to take over from the outgoing chairman; a level headed person who will listen and not the know – all type. He must have a good relationship with the party because they are the ones that brought him into the office. You don’t win the election by yourself alone, rather, some people came together to work for you”, he added.
He disclosed that the majority of the party executives that constitutes the party’s delegates that will vote to elect its chairmanship candidate on Saturday, have reached a consensus on Hon. Apanisile.
“We have a consensus on a candidate in Ikorodu North LCDA already, but not that we have 100% support from everyone, because there will always be some dissents, but a good number of my excos support Apanisile.
“That is a man of our choice. That is the man that we have seen in him what we are expecting in the new chairman.
“We (party excos) were together yesterday (Monday) and we have endorsed one of the aspirants. He is somebody who served for eight years as the vice chairman, and I think that such a person must have known how the local government operates if not by 90%, it cannot be less than 85%”.
He said that the experience garnered for eight years as the council vice chairman would give Apanisile better understanding of the workings of the council.
“He must have known the problems of the council. We don’t want a novice. Look at Asiwaju Bola Tinubu after his tenure as Governor of Lagos State, no governor after him has not served in the state cabinet, which is where issues in Lagos State are being discussed.
“We have gone past bringing somebody who has not been a councilor or supervisor to be council chairman. It will be funny if we cannot find one of us to be the chairman.
“I have served as the Vice Chairman, Deputy Executive Secretary, council chairman and now, I am a party chairman. I know where the problems are within the party and the government in Ikorodu North LCDA.
“We have looked at all the aspirants but there is no one with his experience except Kunle Ogunbela, who had served as the council chairman and who is also contesting”.
He said that the majority of the delegates agreed on the candidacy of Apanisile, because of his experience.
“In picking the candidate, we have considered a lot of things and we come to an agreement that we should go for Apanisile. Convincing the delegates on who they should cast their votes for, you must feel their pulse, and that is what we have done and they have accepted the candidacy of Apanisile, because he has served for eight years as Vice Chairman and there is no doubt that he must have known over three quarters of the job expected of him and that is why we have chosen him.
“We will do the campaign for him when the time comes, and we will tell the people why he is the best that we have for now”, Otunba Tijani added.
