Akin Osuntokun, the director general of the Labour Party’s presidential campaign, has provided insight into the drama that took place at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal on Wednesday.
Lamidi Apapa, the party’s deputy national chairman for the south, had attempted to sit on one of the chairs designated for party representatives during the proceedings in Abuja.
However, Apapa was escorted out of the courthouse by police officers amid booing from LP supporters outside only moments after a contentious argument that was captured on camera and widely circulated on social media.
In a live broadcast on Politics Today on Channels Television, Osuntokun charged the deputy national chairman with having a fixation with recognition.
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“As a matter of fact, the incident started from me. Our protocol lady usually reserves a four-seater for us – myself, [Peter] Obi and anybody… the party chairman,” he said.
“I think the man is obsessed with recognition because when they were there, that was the first question he came with. When I was sitting, he led his gang of people to come to me that ‘he wants to sit where I am sitting’.
“I said, ‘I don’t know you.’ He said, ‘Don’t you know me?’ I said, ‘Who are you?’ That was what he said: ‘You know me! ‘Who are you?’ I said, ‘Well, I know you but that should be as a nuisance. If you keep on pressing it upon me that you know me, it’s an aspect of the criminalisation of politics in Nigeria today.’
When pressed for more information about the alleged criminalization, the LP campaign director said it took many forms.
If the APC is to be believed, the Senate will be led by a senator who was elected by an unusual Supreme Court decision. He was running concurrently for the Senate and the Presidency. They are now bringing it to flaunt it in our faces after scaling that, according to Osuntokun.
