An aspirant, Olalekan Ayinla, has protested his exclusion from the All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Representatives primary list for Ikeja Federal Constituency of Lagos State.
The aspirant described the development as unjust and undemocratic, calling for urgent party intervention ahead of the primaries.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the incumbent lawmaker, James Faleke, has held the seat for multiple terms, making the contest closely watched in Lagos politics.
Ayinla said on Thursday that he purchased his nomination form, submitted it, and participated in the Abuja screening exercise, adding that he received no disqualification notice.
“It is important I call this press conference because of the situation I found myself in,” he said.
He said he discovered hours before the primary that his name was omitted from the final list of cleared aspirants for the exercise.
“Everything went well after screening, and no committee contacted me to say I was disqualified,” he added.
Ayinla also said some aspirants were invited for briefings and peace pact signing, while his own name was missing from the published list.
“Just about an hour ago, I learnt my name was excluded from those participating in tomorrow’s primary,” he said.
He insisted that if disqualified, he should have been officially notified within six days after the screening.
He appealed to President Bola Tinubu; APC National Chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda; Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State; and Lagos StateAPC Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi, to intervene.
“I know the party has internal arrangements that work, but I do not understand why this is happening to me,” he said.
He urged party leadership to investigate the alleged injustice and restore his name if it was an administrative omission.
Ayinla said he had capacity to represent the constituency effectively, calling for a free, fair, and transparent primary election.
“There should be opportunity for everyone to participate in the primary without suppression or intimidation,” he said.
