RismadarVoice Reporters
September 28, 2026
Traditional rulers, religious leaders and other stakeholders in Agege and Orile-Agege areas of Lagos State have appealed to former Agege Local Government Chairman Ganiyu Kola Egunjobi and Azeez Yusuf to reconsider their defection from the All Progressives Congress.
The appeal was made during a peace meeting held on Sunday in Orile-Agege amid concerns over political tensions ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The meeting brought together traditional rulers, Christian and Muslim leaders, political stakeholders and community representatives, with participants emphasising the need to maintain peace regardless of political differences.
The Alaige of Orile-Agege, Oba Ambaliu Agbeleyi, said reports suggesting that the political disagreement could result in violence prompted the intervention.
He said community leaders had a responsibility to act before political disagreements threatened the peace and stability of the area.
The monarch appealed to Egunjobi and Yusuf to reconsider their positions and work towards resolving their differences with the APC.
The Olu of Agege, Oba Oyedeji Kamila Ishiba, similarly urged politicians and their supporters to avoid confrontation and prioritise peace within the community.
Other traditional and religious leaders at the meeting also called for dialogue and peaceful resolution of the dispute.
The Chief Imam of Dopemu, Alhaji Olawale Sulaiman, warned against allowing political ambitions to result in violence or loss of lives, while Christian leaders called for continued efforts towards reconciliation.
Egunjobi, who attended the meeting, said he had not been aware of the gathering until he was invited by a cleric.
Explaining the circumstances surrounding his departure from the APC, the former council chairman maintained that he won the party’s primary for Agege Constituency I but was subsequently replaced by another candidate.
Egunjobi argued that the dispute should have been followed by a reconciliation process involving the affected aspirants and party leadership.
He claimed that the Lagos State leadership of the APC had not invited him to any reconciliation meeting following the controversy.
Egunjobi said he and his supporters had considered challenging the matter in court but decided against doing so following intervention by Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa.
Despite the political disagreement, he assured residents that his supporters would remain peaceful.
“By the grace of God, there won’t be war in the community. I can only speak for myself; I assure you there won’t be war,” he said.
Egunjobi and Yusuf recently moved to the Allied Peoples Movement after disagreements surrounding the APC primaries.
They subsequently secured APM tickets for the 2027 Lagos State House of Assembly elections, with Egunjobi contesting Agege Constituency I and Yusuf seeking the Constituency II seat.
The political dispute has generated contrasting reactions within the APC in Agege, with some party stakeholders previously maintaining that the defections would not affect the party’s electoral strength.
Sunday’s meeting, however, focused primarily on reconciliation and preventing political disagreements from disrupting peace in Agege and Orile-Agege as preparations for the 2027 elections intensify.
