The days of Akinwunmi Ambode as the Governor of Lagos State may be numbered as the 57 council chairmen in the state have reportedly turned against him.
According to a report by The Cable, the council bosses have thrown their support behind Jide Sanwo-Olu, who is the preferred candidate of political godfather in the state, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to become governor of Lagos in 2019.
This was said to have happened at a meeting convened by the chairmen where they endorsed Sanwo-Olu.
This is coming a day after Ambode picked his Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the APC National Secretariat, Abuja to seek a second term in office.
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Aside Ambode and Sanwo-Olu, who is the current managing director of Lagos State Property Development Corporation (LSPDC), another party stalwart, Obafemi Hamzat, has also expressed interest in contesting for the APC gubernatorial ticket.
Tinubu and Ambode are believed to be at loggerheads as a festering disagreement between them was said to have been exacerbated by Tinubu’s insistence on the adoption of direct primary election to choose the APC gubernatorial candidate.
Ambode is believed to be in favour of indirect primary election.
According to TheCable, the chairmen’s importance in the political drama has become enhanced by their usefulness as grassroots mobilisers under the direct primary system adopted by the APC to pick governorship candidates.
“Meeting is over . Ambode is out . Jide Sanwo -Olu is the new governor of Lagos . All 57 local government chairmen have signed his form. It’s over ,” TheCable quoted a highly-placed source as saying.
Majority members of the Lagos State House of Assembly are believed to be staunch supporters of Tinubu and it is believed that moves are being made to impeach Ambode before the gubernatorial primary in the state.