Tinubu endorses Hamzat as Lagos APC consensus governorship candidate

Lagos State Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat has received President Bola Tinubu’s official backing as the All Progressives Congress consensus candidate for the 2027 Lagos governorship election, capping a swift sequence of endorsements that has effectively cleared his path to the party’s ticket.

The endorsement was made at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday, following the earlier unanimous adoption of Hamzat by the Governance Advisory Council — the highest decision-making body of the APC in Lagos — at a meeting in Lagos House, Marina.

Speaking after the meeting, Hamzat confirmed that the GAC delegation had presented him to the President, who subsequently gave his blessing.

“These are fathers, they are leaders, they’ve seen a lot of Christmases, they’ve seen a lot of Eid El Kabir, so they have experience, and therefore I’m really, really excited that they brought me here to meet Mr President, and Mr President has blessed us and blessed the decision of GAC,” he said.

In a statement issued shortly after, Hamzat described the endorsement as a weight of responsibility he was ready to carry. “I am fully aware of the responsibility it carries. I am enthusiastic and looking forward to continuing on the good work and the foundation the President has laid in Lagos State,” he said, adding that the state remained “an ongoing project” and that there was “still a lot of work ahead.”

On his readiness for the governorship, Hamzat said the assignment was audacious but expressed confidence that his tenure as deputy governor had adequately prepared him. “Having served as Deputy Governor of Lagos under Governor Sanwo-Olu, I’ve learned a lot. I know the room. I know where the kitchen is,” he said.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had earlier endorsed his deputy as successor, describing him as competent and deeply familiar with the workings of government.

GAC chairman Tajudeen Olusi also noted that the consensus decision was intended to guide the party’s direction, while stressing that the APC would still conduct its official primaries in line with established guidelines.

At the APC national secretariat in Abuja, James Faleke — who represents Ikeja federal constituency and leads the Tinubu Support Group — collected Hamzat’s governorship nomination form alongside the presidential nomination form purchased on Tinubu’s behalf, describing Hamzat as “the incoming governor of Lagos.”

Christian leaders in Lagos had separately endorsed Hamzat, with the chairman of the Christian NGO Coordinating Group, Rev. Sam Ogedengbe, saying the endorsement followed extensive consultations and that Hamzat had shown his mettle as a grassroots leader.

Hamzat, an engineer and technocrat, has served as deputy governor since 2019. In 2018, he stepped down from the governorship race and later emerged as Sanwo-Olu’s running mate — a move that helped unify party ranks ahead of that election.

A PDP governorship hopeful, Laja Adeoye, criticised the endorsements as a “coronation ceremony” aimed at sustaining what he called a long-standing political stranglehold over the state, accusing the ruling party of running Lagos “on autopilot.”