Cracks have emerged within the Lagos State chapter of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, as members of the State Executive Committee accused the chairman, Mr King Okuneye, of manipulating the outcome of the party’s primaries and running the organisation without due consultation.
The allegations were made on Tuesday during a press conference in Ikeja by the party’s Deputy Chairman, Mr Akinwande Osikominu, following an emergency meeting attended by some members of the state executive.
Osikominu alleged that the chairman had consistently sidelined other party leaders in key decision-making processes, a situation he said had fueled internal divisions and weakened confidence in the leadership of the party.
According to him, tensions within the party reached a breaking point during the conduct of the recent primaries.
He claimed that members of the State Executive Committee were unaware of the existence of a separate election committee allegedly constituted by the party’s national leadership until the collation stage of the exercise.
“Most embarrassingly, the State Exco was kept completely in the dark about the establishment of any parallel election committee by the National Body. We only learned of its existence during collation.
“This level of secrecy and exclusion sidelined the entire Executive Committee, leaving us humiliated and eroding trust in the leadership,” he said.
The deputy chairman further accused Okuneye of disregarding decisions reached collectively by party leaders and unilaterally altering election reports and results.
“The Chairman stands accused of unilaterally altering election reports and results that were previously agreed upon through collaborative processes.
“This breach has further fractured internal cohesion and deepened the sense of exclusion felt by the State Exco,” Osikominu alleged.
He warned that the unresolved issues could undermine the party’s performance in future elections if urgent steps were not taken to address them.
Osikominu also expressed concern over what he described as the chairman’s prolonged absence from Lagos State, arguing that effective leadership requires constant engagement with party structures and grassroots members.
“King Okuneye has been resident outside Lagos State for several years. This prolonged physical absence has created a significant operational disconnect, impairing his ability to understand and respond to the unique dynamics, challenges and opportunities in Lagos.
“The resulting leadership vacuum continues to weaken grassroots coordination and threatens the party’s overall viability in the state,” he said.
The deputy chairman further alleged that the chairman had failed to properly constitute and publish an authentic list of local government executives, a development he said had led to confusion and competing claims to leadership positions in several councils.
He also raised concerns over the management of party finances, alleging that party funds were being paid into personal accounts without adequate transparency or accountability.
“Multiple aspirants have lodged consistent and verifiable complaints about exorbitant demands for funds to influence outcomes, secure favourable reports or gain access to party processes.
“Party funds are routinely channelled into the Chairman’s personal accounts and other unofficial channels, with zero disclosure, no audits and no accountability.
“The state treasurer has been rendered completely redundant since inauguration, with no visibility into inflows or outflows,” he claimed.
Osikominu also alleged that the party secretariat had been largely abandoned, with many official activities allegedly being conducted in hotels, lounges and business centres instead of the designated party office.
Despite the grievances, he reaffirmed the loyalty of the executive members to the party’s national leadership and called on the National Executive Committee to investigate the allegations and restore transparency, accountability and inclusiveness within the Lagos chapter.
Responding to the allegations, a source close to the chairman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, dismissed the claims as unfounded and politically motivated.
The source maintained that Okuneye had performed effectively as chairman and denied accusations of result manipulation, financial misconduct and high-handedness.
“All the allegations are baseless. The chairman has been up and doing in the discharge of his duties. All those things about results manipulation, high-handedness and diversion of funds are pure lies.
“This is what happens when things do not go in the way of people. They wanted certain people to emerge at the primaries, but party members decided otherwise. They are just losers.
“They are a bunch of selfish, disloyal people who are bent on creating unnecessary problems in the party,” the source said.