Follow Us on Google
The youth leader of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in Lagos State, Ms Zainab Aderinsola, has described the party’s 2027 governorship candidate, Prince Laja Adeoye, as the best alternative to lead Lagos.
She said Adeoye’s early entry into the race, private-sector experience, political background and detailed policy agenda distinguished him from other opposition aspirants seeking to unseat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
She made the assertion in a statement titled “Alausa 2027: Why Laja Adeoye of the APM is the frontline alternative to lead Lagos in 2027”.
She said: “Lagos does not lack ambition. It lacks a politics that matches its size.
“For more than two decades, the state has been run by one dominant machine, skilled at continuity and weak at listening.
“Roads are awarded at inflated costs and still fail under ordinary use. Traffic remains a daily tax on workers, traders and businesses.”
She said the challenges had created a gap which Adeoye, through his “Atunto Eko 1.0” agenda, intended to address by focusing on the everyday needs of Lagos residents.
She stressed that Adeoye was not a newcomer to Lagos, having lived, worked and built businesses in the state before entering the governorship contest.
She said the candidate, born on 2 May 1981, had roots in Ijebu communities in Lagos East, particularly Ikorodu and Epe, as well as the Awori lineage of Lagos West.
According to her, Adeoye holds a diploma in computer science, a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Lagos and a master’s degree in property development and management from Leadcity University.
She said he was also pursuing an Executive Master of Business Administration, describing his academic and professional background as relevant to managing a complex metropolis such as Lagos.
“Lagos is a city of numbers, land and systems. A candidate who has spent years pricing housing, managing contractors and delivering projects starts from a place different from a career politician, whose main product is patronage,” she stated.
She said Adeoye’s experience as Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fendini Group had exposed him to property development, infrastructure and mixed-use projects.
According to her, the company had delivered projects, including Rayfield Gardens City Estate, comprising more than 400 residential units, alongside commercial and social facilities.
Aderinsola said the candidate’s business experience was complemented by the activities of the Laja Adeoye Foundation, which she said provided direct support to people in need.
She said Adeoye’s political journey also gave him experience in party organisation and electoral politics.
According to her, he joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2009, later became pioneer publicity secretary of the Action Democratic Party (ADP) in Lagos and subsequently served as national publicity secretary.
She said Adeoye returned to the PDP in 2021 and contested the Oshodi-Isolo Federal Constituency II seat in the 2023 House of Representatives election.
She said he left the PDP in May 2026 after disagreements over internal leadership and legal issues, which he believed were distracting the party from addressing issues affecting Nigerians.
She said his subsequent emergence as the APM’s governorship candidate was the result of a process that involved screening, clearance and consensus primary.
According to her, Adeoye was affirmed at the APM’s governorship primary in Yaba on 23 July, with delegates from the 20 local government areas endorsing him.
She said Kemi Adenuga became his running mate after the party replaced its earlier placeholder deputy governorship candidate.
Aderinsola said the APM candidate’s early mobilisation was another factor supporting his claim as a frontline alternative to the APC in 2027.
She said the Laja Adeoye Campaign Organisation had commenced issue-based outreach across Lagos, including Lagos Island, Epe, Alimosho, Badagry, Ikeja and the Mainland.
According to her, the campaign had been presenting Adeoye’s “Atunto Eko 1.0 – Re-engineering Lagos for Inclusive Prosperity” as an alternative development blueprint.
She said the programme focused on affordable healthcare and housing, quality education, employment, infrastructure, electricity, transportation, waste management, flood control and security.
She said: “The programme is where an alternative has to be earned.
Other News
“These are campaign targets, not results. They are also more concrete than the usual promise to empower youth.”
According to her, Adeoye had proposed industrial and skills clusters capable of creating about 100,000 direct jobs within two years and a wider target of 1.5 million jobs within four years.
She said the proposed initiatives included technology hubs in Yaba and Ogba, agro-processing centres in Badagry and Epe, as well as skills academies across the three senatorial districts.
She said the Eko Skill Code initiative would train young people in solar installation, plumbing, coding and creative industries.
On electricity, she said Adeoye had proposed at least 2,000 megawatts through independent power projects across Lagos’s five IBILE divisions, comprising Ikeja, Badagry, Ikorodu, Lagos Island and Epe.
She said the candidate also proposed a state electricity grid to improve power distribution to homes, businesses and industries.
Aderinsola said Adeoye’s housing plan included private-sector partnerships to deliver about 100,000 affordable homes in Epe, Badagry and Ikorodu.
She said the plan would also promote single-digit mortgages and link housing redevelopment with markets and commercial facilities to enable residents to live closer to economic opportunities.
On healthcare, she said Adeoye had pledged to build, rehabilitate and equip more than 300 primary healthcare centres within 18 months if elected.
She said his agenda also included flood-control measures, cleaner waste management, expanded Bus Rapid Transit services, integrated water transportation and digital traffic management.
Aderinsola said Adeoye’s proposed governance reforms were another reason she considered him a credible alternative to the existing political order in Lagos.
She said he had pledged to scrap the Governor’s Advisory Council and replace it with a broader advisory body comprising traditional rulers, religious leaders, youths, women, chief executives, business leaders and representatives of the five IBILE divisions.
She said Adeoye also proposed converting the existing 37 Local Council Development Areas into full local governments, potentially increasing Lagos’s local government structure from 20 to 57.
According to her, the proposal was designed to bring government closer to the people and promote wider participation in governance.
Aderinsola said Adeoye’s vision was not based on excluding non-Yoruba residents from Lagos but on protecting the state’s cultural heritage while promoting inclusiveness.
She added: “Culture and tradition should not be lost to the pace of a megacity.
“Anyone willing to obey the law and respect that heritage, whatever their ethnicity, religion or origin, should be able to build a life here.”
According to her, the candidate’s central proposition was to “re-engineer Lagos for inclusive prosperity” by ensuring that the state’s wealth translated into broader economic opportunities.
Aderinsola acknowledged that the APC remained a formidable political force because of its political structure, resources and incumbency advantage.
She, however, argued that Adeoye’s combination of business experience, political exposure, early mobilisation and policy proposals made him a serious alternative in the 2027 contest.
She said: “Lagos has outgrown a politics in which a few men choose the governor and the rest of the state adjusts.
“A developer with Lagos roots, a former federal constituency candidate, already on the ballot under the APM, with a written agenda on power, housing, jobs, flooding, health and the cost of daily life, is the clearest organised alternative now in the field.”
She said the 2027 election would ultimately determine whether Lagos voters accepted Adeoye’s proposed reset.
Aderinsola said: “Lagos does not need another slogan about world-class status. It needs shorter commutes, cheaper and steadier power, roofs people can afford, clinics that work, and a government that does not answer only to a council behind the governor.”
She said the APM candidate was offering voters an alternative under the “Atunto Eko” agenda, adding that the electorate would decide whether to embrace the proposition at the 6 February 2027 governorship election.
