Over the past few weeks, there has been an increasing rate of tribalism in electoral campaigns, especially in Lagos.
Although many have not been direct in their tribalistic approach, they have been dropping subtle hints.
Recently, a group of people set up a protest to ‘remind’ Yoruba people that Lagos state is a Yoruba land.
Likewise, on social media, there have been many posts and messages alleging that the Igbo people in Lagos want to take over the state.
The Igbo presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, won in Lagos State against the Yoruba presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in the just concluded presidential election.
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Although Tinubu was said to be the overall winner and declared president-elect, Obi’s win in Lagos is still baffling.
This has led many to attempt to ‘remind’ Yoruba people to not allow an Igbo person to take over their state.
In the midst of all of this, an Igbo-dominated spare parts market in Akerele, Apapa went up in flames. People suspect party thugs were responsible for that heinous crime.
Also, there have been reports of attacks on Igbo traders around the state.
Tribalism As A Tool For Separation
For the LP gubernatorial candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the people of Lagos want good governance, regardless of the language a leader speaks or the tribe he belongs to.
This is as many have tried to discredit him for being half Igbo and having another name ‘Chinedu’.
He noted that he is a proper cosmopolitan Lagosian having roots with the Yoruba people and was trained in the best institutions in the world.
The LP candidate said Lagos had always existed in harmony but politicians use ethnicity as a tool to divide the people of the state.
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He said: “Lagos State has been in harmony for a long time. What happens is politicians try to divide us.
“Let us be wary of politicians who remember that they are Yoruba when it is time for politics.
“When Fulani herdsmen were making incursions into Oyo and people like Sunday Igboho, and Rotimi Akeredolu stood up, a lot of politicians in Lagos were quiet.
“They played politics with it.
“When it was time for Amotekun, they were quiet. They were quiet on so many interests of the Yoruba people because they wanted an alliance with the north.
“So, they put their political interest above the interest of their people.
“And all of a sudden, it is election time and they are reminding you that this person does not speak Yoruba.”
“All the agberos (thugs) on the streets that are wasting their lives, young men that are getting on drugs and are multiplying for years, do they meet the ones that are Yorubas and rehabilitate them, get them off the streets and ensure that they are more productive members of the society?” he queried.
Voter Intimidation And Harassment
Rhodes-Vivour says the security and safety of voters would be paramount in the forthcoming March 18 election.
He promises that any form of voter intimidation and harassment will be met with resistance.
“My focus now is on security and ensuring that people come out to vote and they are not intimidated or harassed.
“Any form of intimidation or harassment will be met with resistance,” he said.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) postponed the governorship and state assemblies’ elections from March 11 to March 18.
The LP candidate says “it is not about rushing an election; it is about getting it right and that is why we got the injunction to ensure that INEC actually follows its processes.
“There are a lot of things that must be done right if we want to get this country on the right path,” he said.
