An aspirant in the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election for Agege Constituency I in Lagos State, Alhaji Ganiyu Kola Egunjobi, has alleged that the party’s state leadership overturned his victory and imposed another candidate despite his reported win at the polls.

Speaking with journalists on Thursday, Egunjobi expressed dissatisfaction with the outcome of the primary election, accusing the Lagos APC leadership of disregarding the wishes of party members by announcing Mr. Gbenga Michael Abiola as the party’s candidate.

According to him, results collated from various voting centres showed that he emerged victorious and was publicly declared winner by electoral officials.

Egunjobi claimed that records available to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Department of State Services (DSS) support his position. He said he secured 9,132 votes, while fellow aspirants, Mr. Segun Olawoye and Mr. Gbenga Michael Abiola, polled 450 and 430 votes respectively.

“Based on the results obtained from the various voting centres and the records available to INEC and DSS, I won the election and was officially declared winner by the electoral officials in full view of the public,” he stated.

He alleged that despite the outcome, party leaders ignored the results and subsequently announced Abiola, whom he said finished third in the contest, as the APC candidate for the constituency.

Egunjobi described the development as contrary to democratic principles and insisted that his protest is aimed at defending the integrity of the party’s internal electoral process rather than pursuing personal ambition.

He stressed that democracy can only thrive when the choices of voters are respected and reflected in electoral outcomes.

“This is not merely about my personal political aspiration. It is about protecting the integrity of our electoral process and ensuring that every vote counts,” he said.

The APC chieftain, however, maintained his loyalty to the party, noting that he has no intention of creating division within its ranks. He said he has activated the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanisms and submitted a formal petition to the appropriate organs, accompanied by evidence he believes supports his claim.

Egunjobi called on the party leadership to conduct an objective review of the primary election and ensure justice is served.

He also appealed to his supporters and party members to remain peaceful and law-abiding while awaiting the outcome of the review process.

“The credibility of our internal democratic process depends on the ability of our institutions to act fairly and courageously,” he said.

The aspirant expressed confidence that the matter would be resolved fairly and that the mandate he claims was freely given to him by party members would ultimately be respected.

At the time of filing this report, the Lagos State APC leadership had not responded to the allegations. Likewise, Mr. Gbenga Michael Abiola had yet to publicly react to the claims.