31st March, 2015
Three Igbo candidates have won elections into the House of Representatives in Lagos State. The successful candidates who contested on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, are Chief Oghene Egboh, Mrs. Rita Orji and Mr. Tony Nwoolu.
Egboh won the House of Representatives seat for Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area while Orji won in Ajeromi-Ifelodun LGA and Nwoolu won the Oshodi/Isolo Federal Constituency.
Egboh polled a total of 29,761 votes to defeat the incumbent Ganiyu Olukolu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who scored 20,616 votes.
All the Igbo winners won in areas heavily populated by the Igbo in Lagos State. They defeated candidates of the APC, which is the ruling party in the state.
The PDP candidate in Ojo Local Government, Tajudeen Obasa also won the House of Reps seat for the area while Tunji Soyinka, also of PDP won the House of Reps seat for Surulere Federal Constituency 2.
In Mushin Federal Constituency 2, Dauda Kako Aare of the Accord Party also defeated the APC candidate, Yemi Alli, to clinch a ticket to the House of Representatives.
The victory of the Igbo candidates in Lagos State, according to some observers, is not a surprise as Igbo candidates have in the past won national elections in Lagos State. They cited the era of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons, NCNC, led by the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, when Igbo residing in Lagos won elections into the regional and central legislatures.
Meanwhile, Chief Egboh on Tuesday expressed his desire to attract infrastructure development to the state.
Egboh made the promise in an interview on Tuesday.
“In this particular constituency the biggest problem we have is the decay of
our infrastructure. There is no water, sewage system is bad, and there are no playing grounds,” he claimed.
Egboh promised to lobby ministers in charge of the ministries responsible for such facilities for an improved infrastructure in his constituency.
“My success as member of House of Representatives-elect was very significant being a non-indigene to have won the seat for the first time in Amuwo Odofin, Federal Constituency.
“Again this is the first time the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won in Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency,” he said.
Egboh, however, linked his success to hard work, focus and the experience of being a politician having served two terms as councillor, both in Amuwo Odofin and Ojo Local Government Areas.
“The senior legislators will see the quality in me and my constituency will feel the impact,” he declared.
Egboh gave glory to God and thanked the people of Amuwo Odofin whom, he said, had confidence and trust in him.
The House of Reps-elect who hails from Delta said his house-to-house campaign had indeed paid him, saying he had been working for the election in the past two years.