President Bola Tinubu has reportedly declined moves by a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Desmond Elliot, to secure a fourth term in office, amid ongoing political alignments within the Surulere constituency.
According to multiple Presidency sources, the President rebuffed separate appeals from influential individuals who were sent to lobby on Elliot’s behalf, signaling his stance on the matter.
It was gathered that lobbyists had urged Tinubu to override the position of Surulere All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders, who have thrown their support behind the immediate past Lagos Special Adviser on Housing, Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, as a replacement for Elliot.
Sources further disclosed that the actor-turned-politician reportedly deployed several high-profile figures, including a retired General, his wife, a Senator, a serving Minister, and an ally of the President, to press his case at the Presidential Villa. However, these efforts did not secure Tinubu’s approval for a fourth-term bid.
The President was said to have maintained that his decision aligns with the position of the majority of Surulere stakeholders, adding that he would not act against his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, described as the Governance Advisory Council (GAC) leader in Surulere and a longstanding figure in the area’s political development.
Tinubu reportedly emphasised that the outcome of a direct primary election would ultimately determine political support within the constituency, stating that it would “indicate who commands popular control of Surulere APC politics, not external influence.”
During one of the meetings, he was quoted as saying, “If the people who carried Desmond for twelve years can no longer defend him, that says everything about the boy’s character and performance.”
Reacting to the development, Chairman of the Surulere Accountability Front (SAF), Olanrewaju Badmus, said the majority of community stakeholders in Surulere have rejected Elliot’s fourth-term ambition.
Badmus described Elliot’s 12 years in office as “12 years of poor representation, political instability and character deficits.” He added, “Most of the Surulere youths are tired of him and don’t see him as a role model. Power is transient and only God gives power to whom He desires. The call for change in Surulere 1’s representation at Lagos House of Assembly is not accidental. It is the verdict of a constituency that has been patient long enough.”
