A Lagos-based advocacy group, the De Renaissance Patriots Foundation, has strongly condemned a recent statement by Nigeria’s Minister for Youths, who suggested that Seyi Tinubu is fit to govern Lagos State.
In a press release issued on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, the group described the Minister’s comments as “careless” and a personal opinion that does not reflect the views of Lagosians across the state’s five divisions: Epe, Lagos Island, Badagry, Ikeja, and Ikorodu.
The group asserted that Seyi Tinubu, despite his public profile, does not have ancestral ties to Lagos State and cannot lay legitimate claims to its political or cultural heritage.
“Lagos does not need outsiders”
The group reiterated that Lagosians are capable of governing themselves without external imposition. “We firmly reject the idea of Mr. Seyi Tinubu governing us. Lagos State is not in need of any outsider to lead it,” the statement read.
The group further accused certain elders of compromising the state’s interests for personal gains and warned against what it described as attempts to “sell Lagos State” to external forces.
A word of caution to Seyi Tinubu
The group advised Seyi Tinubu not to be misled by those encouraging him to run for the governorship, emphasizing that Lagos is no longer what it used to be when leaders could easily impose candidates.
“Lagosians, particularly the youth, will resist any attempt to force Mr. Seyi Tinubu on us as governor. If he wishes to run for office, he should consider contesting in Osun or Oyo State, where his mother hails from,” the group said.
No room for monarchy in Lagos politics
The De Renaissance Patriots Foundation concluded by stressing that Lagos has enough qualified sons and daughters to govern it, dismissing any notion of “imperial rule” in the state’s leadership.
“Lagos is not a monarchy, and Nigeria is not ready for imperial rule,” the group declared.
The statement has sparked reactions on social media, with many Lagosians debating the issue of indigenous leadership and the political dynamics of the state ahead of the 2027 gubernatorial elections.
