2027: Tinubu’s loyalists begin underground lobby for Lagos governorship ticket

The upcoming succession race for the governorship of Lagos State in 2027 has begun to attract significant attention as potential candidates and media personalities are reportedly engaging in preliminary discussions and seeking support from influential figures such as President Bola Tinubu and other prominent political entities in the state, in their bid to secure the position of the governor of the Mega City, ThePAPERS reports.

It has been revealed that every potential candidate in the state party has a key supporter. However, it is widely recognized that the current governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has some influence over his successor, but navigating the political landscape within the Lagos state party system remains challenging.

As rumors circulate, there are reportedly more than five individuals vying for an influential political seat through underground lobbying. The current governor is expected to announce his preferred candidate closer to the end of his tenure.

Interestingly, the current speaker of the Lagos state, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, has been rumored to be among those lobbying for the party ticket.

Sanwo’s stand against Hon. Obasa could be due to many factors especially the rejection of his commissioners at the state assembly on two different occasions and other internal issues.

According to our source, a top executive in All Progressives Congress (APC) Lagos state said the next governor of Lagos will be a Muslim, and this brings in the name of Dr. Hakeem Muri Okunola popularly called HMO. He was the immediate Lagos state Head of Service, currently serving as a private secretary to President Tinubu, except otherwise, zoning will not favour him.

A top name, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff to President Tinubu, is a politician with little trust in good governance by Lagos State APC, so it is less likely.

In Lagos East, Senator Tokunbo Abiru emerges as the top aspirant. As a prominent technocrat, he has garnered significant support from many APC supporters in his constituency. However, questions arise regarding his level of exposure and experience to effectively govern Lagos.

“The heat is on, people are already lobbying for who will be the next Lagos governor after Sanwo-Olu, but the next candidate is not only going to be the decision of the President being our political godfather in the state, it has to involve some grassroots powerhouse and the President is already aware, ” a member of Lagos State APC told ThePAPERS exclusively.

He continued: “There’s no favourite but a Muslim candidate will emerge obviously. What I can say is that Asiwaju has a way of surprising lobbyists, and I think that will still happen again. Let me also inform you that whatever name you are hearing from the Lagos Assembly is fake, it can never happen. When the time comes, a gentleman could emerge as Sanwo-Olu successor but we are waiting for the game to become more intense and intense.”

Responding to the question that if the president picks from his current presidency cabinet and appointment, he said: “Politics has changed, and I can tell you that Asiwaju is always ahead of those changes, he knows what the Lagosian want and as a party, we will not want to play to the gallery of Chinedu or Obidient, just like what happened last time. Every politician wants to become Lagos governor by all means but we have a strong political structure in the state, even the person who attempted to destroy it regretted his action.

“Finally, any name you are hearing is subject to speculations and speculation is welcome in the world of media propaganda.”