Council Chairman Raises Alarm Over Tyranny As Lagos APC Bans 2027 Candidates From Overseas Travels

Council Chairman Raises Alarm Over Tyranny

 

OpenLife News reports that Lagos APC has banned all its 2027 candidates from travelling overseas until the general elections are over.

The State Chairman, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi, gave the order on Friday, September 18, 2026, while inaugurating the PBAT/KOH Campaign Council in Ikeja.

Ojelabi said candidates must not leave the country and must work closely with the campaign council.He directed candidates to cooperate and liaise with council members at all times for effective coordination.

“No candidate is allowed to travel out of the country until after the elections,” Ojelabi declared.

He also instructed council members to operate within their senatorial districts and local governments and mobilise massively for the party.

On the campaign secretariat, he said it will not be open to all members as work there is limited.

“The secretariat is mainly for few officers and meant for policy formulations and directives,” he said.

Reacting, a  Council Chairman who spoke to OpenLIfe Friday afternoon on the condition of anonymity  described the development as growing tyranny and high-handedness in the political affairs of the state.

He emphasized  that democratic principles are being sidelined in favour of imposition and intimidation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

According to him, local government chairmen and party faithful are being denied the freedom to express their views on party decisions, particularly on candidate selection and campaign structures.

“What we are seeing in Lagos today is no longer democracy but tyranny. People are afraid to speak, chairmen are being threatened for holding dissenting opinions.

“Now, they have placed a ban on overseas travels for candidates. Where is that done? Most candidates have connections abroad that they would want to visit to raise funds but a leaders is autocratically placing a ban on travels,” he lamented .

He claimed that recent directives from the party leadership, including restrictions on movement and centralization of campaign activities, have created fear and stifled internal democracy within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos.

The Council chairman  called on the national leadership of the APC and well-meaning elders in the state to intervene and restore inclusiveness and justice in the running of the party.

He warned that if the alleged authoritarian approach continues, it could affect the party’s unity and performance in the 2027 elections.