Former Lagos Labour Party governorship candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has criticised the ruling party in Lagos, accusing it of resorting to violence as a political strategy while reiterating his commitment to contest the 2027 elections under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Speaking during an interview with ARISE News on Monday, Rhodes-Vivour said: “I think our chances are great. Our chances are strong. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done, because as you can see from the violence that is currently being exhibited, there is a drive to make this a one-party state. And, you know, I say violence is the last refuge for incompetence.”
He emphasised that the ruling party had failed to show progress and instead leaned on intimidation. “Many governments have been in charge of a place for over 20 years and they cannot campaign based on the value they’ve added and the people they’ve lifted out of poverty and the lives that they’ve made good, but instead depend on violence and intimidation. They say that in itself says a lot, right?”
On his governorship ambition, Rhodes-Vivour confirmed he would run in 2027, saying: “I’ve said this several times, by the grace of God, I intend to run in the next election, 2027.”
Explaining his switch from the Labour Party to ADC, he rejected claims of betrayal. “I will not say I dumped LP because, as you know, the Labour Party is divided into two particular factions. One of such factions is pro-coalition. A coalition is a coming together of several political parties, several political thinkers, and the ADC is the party that has been adopted by the coalition,” he said.
He further stressed his loyalty to the new platform: “Yes, I’m registered. I’m a registered member of the ADC. I have my membership card. I’m a card carrying member, like Nigerians love to say.”
According to him, the decision was also driven by the urgency of Nigeria’s electoral timetable. “Most primaries will need to be held early next year. And then campaigns will start from middle of next year. So we really don’t have time. And parties that are still currently enmeshed in this legal proceedings or the other will not… be able to provide a stable platform for any serious politician to be able to contest on,” he stated.
He confirmed that the coalition included the Obidient movement.
Rhodes-Vivour also condemned police actions against his party, after security operatives sealed an ADC meeting venue despite prior approval. “We got the approvals, we got the letter, we made the payment. I’ve talked about how on Thursday they came and occupied the venue. I talked about how on Friday I went there, spoke to the police. They asked me to speak to the commissioner of police. I went there, he did not reply my calls or my text message. And on Saturday, the police supervised and protected the APC to do a rally on that same place that I paid for,” he said.
He added: “Our job as citizens is to notify them. The job for the police is to protect the citizens, not to determine who can do what, when and how. That goes against our constitution, that goes against the democracy or democratic principles that we’re practising.”
On his movement “Our Lagos,” Rhodes-Vivour said: “Lagos is bigger than any one individual… Lagos is our Lagos. It doesn’t belong to one man. We need to take responsibility for it. We need to care for it. We need to be involved with it. And it has to work for all of us.”
He also described efforts beyond politics to improve lives in Lagos. “For instance, we have a micro health insurance initiative that we take all over the state because we want to normalise the idea of diagnostic tests and people actually medicating themselves based on data. We’re not waiting for one person that apparently is the owner of Lagos to do that. We’re making a difference as we can, based on our capacity all across the state,” he explained.
At the national level, Rhodes-Vivour maintained that uniting the opposition was crucial. “I feel it would just be a waste of time. I think it’s extremely important that we unite our opposition in terms of numbers, resources, strategy, and influence. And once we can do that, I think we’re in a very strong position to unseat the ruling party.”
He argued that the ruling party lacked legitimacy. “They came in with a very, very unpopular mandate. I mean, they had about 30 percent of the votes. So you’re looking at about 50-something to 60 percent of who did not vote for this, for our current president. And that says a lot. And the level of the cost of living crisis currently is at an all-time high. People are suffering. Niger has never been this hard,” he declared.
Rhodes-Vivour concluded by highlighting recent political consultations. “On our way to visit the designate, we stopped by former president Obasanjo just to greet him. They had a closed-door meeting, His Excellency Peter Obi and himself… And then with Olubata designate, he spoke about service, spoke about the idea…what the king is supposed to be now for his people, in relation to service, in relation to making a difference and adding value to their lives.”
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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