The Director General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Akin Osuntokun, has shared insight into the the drama that played out at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal on Wednesday.
The party’s Deputy National Chairman (South), Lamidi Apapa, had attempted to occupy one of the seats assigned to representatives of the party at the proceeding in Abuja.
However, moments after a heated exchange as captured in videos widely shared on social media, Apapa was whisked out of the courtroom by police officers amid boos from LP supporters outside.
Osuntokun, who made a live appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, accused the deputy national chairman of obsession with recognition.
“As a matter of fact, the incident started from me. Our protocol lady usually reserves a four-seater for us – myself, [Peter] Obi and anybody… the party chairman,” he said.
“I think the man is obsessed with recognition because when they were there, that was the first question he came with. When I was sitting, he led his gang of people to come to me that ‘he wants to sit where I am sitting’.
“I said, ‘I don’t know you.’ He said, ‘Don’t you know me?’ I said, ‘Who are you?’ That was what he said: ‘You know me! ‘Who are you?’ I said, ‘Well, I know you but that should be as a nuisance. If you keep on pressing it upon me that you know me, it’s an aspect of the criminalisation of politics in Nigeria today.’”
Asked to elaborate on the so-called criminalisation, the LP campaign director stated that it had several manifestations.
“We are going to have a senate president, if the APC were to be believed, who became senator by an unprecedented judgement of the Supreme Court? He was contesting for presidency and senate at the same time. After scaling that, now they are bringing it to rub it in our faces,” Osuntokun stated.