The 2027 governorship candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in Lagos State, Funso Doherty, has described the All Progressives Congress (APC) as an “aggressive and unscrupulous” ruling party over its alleged actions toward opposition in the state.
Doherty, who spoke on his political plans ahead of the 2027 governorship election, said the dominance of the APC in Lagos should not be mistaken for the absence of opposition in the state.
According to him, opposition figures have continued to challenge the government through political and legal channels despite what he described as the ruling party’s control of the state’s political space and airwaves.
“I don’t think that is true. I have been challenging the state government in the last four years. In fact, I sued the government in 2024 about the environmental impact assessment on the coastal road. The outcome of the result is what we are seeing now, and we are in the appeal court at the moment,” he said.
Doherty said the perception that Lagos lacks a vibrant opposition was largely driven by the visibility of APC campaign materials and its dominance of the media space.
“That notion is because you see posters of APC everywhere, and because they control the airwaves, it is easy to stand back and say there is no opposition. That is not true! We are here talking, fighting, but we are dealing with a very aggressive and unscrupulous incumbent who is not prepared to operate in a live-and-let-live world,” he added.
The NDC candidate argued that the APC itself benefited from a political environment that allowed opposition parties to compete and eventually take power.
“APC came into government because there was live and let live. If the government in power on that day was saying ‘it was live and die,’ would they have APC today?” he asked.
Doherty also criticised the performance of successive administrations in Lagos, saying the state had failed to adequately deliver on the constitutional responsibilities of providing welfare and security for its residents.
He challenged Lagosians to assess government performance by examining their standard of living, access to education and healthcare, transportation, housing, income levels and other indicators of social welfare.
“Lagos is not working,” he declared, arguing that residents had become accustomed to the same political system after decades of one-party dominance.
According to him, the state’s problems are particularly evident in the education sector, healthcare system, transportation network and housing.
Doherty said the poor performance of students in the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) demonstrated the urgent need for a major overhaul of public education.
He also advocated increased investment in technical education, saying the state must equip young people with practical skills that would enable them to secure employment beyond conventional office jobs.
On healthcare, he said many residents had lost confidence in government hospitals and were increasingly turning to traditional birth attendants and pharmacists because they perceived the services available outside public hospitals as better.
Doherty similarly criticised Lagos’ transport system, describing it as chaotic and arguing that the government had surrendered too much responsibility to private operators.
He promised that an NDC administration would pursue a more organised transportation system, expand housing provision and tackle the conditions in Lagos slums.
The candidate also promised to reduce the cost of governance and improve remuneration for civil servants, arguing that government employees should be adequately compensated for their work.
Doherty expressed confidence that he would win the 2027 governorship election, saying, “We are very confident. Let us wait and see.”
He explained that his decision to move from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to the NDC followed the failure of efforts to use the ADC as a platform for unifying opposition forces ahead of the 2027 elections.
He said the division between former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi led supporters to make separate political choices, prompting him to identify more closely with the NDC’s philosophy of accountability, prudence and people-centred governance.
“Government is a service. That is why I am in NDC today,” he said.
Doherty also urged Lagos voters, particularly young people, to participate actively in the 2027 election, stressing that electoral participation was essential to changing the political leadership of the state.
He cited the recent governorship election in Osun State as an example of how increased voter participation could influence electoral outcomes, contrasting its reported turnout with the significantly lower participation recorded in Lagos in 2023.
“The youth should understand that the future of Lagos State is actually in their hands,” he said.
Doherty urged voters who were discouraged by the outcome or conduct of previous elections not to stay away from the polls, but to turn out in greater numbers and vote for what they consider good governance.
“If anybody doesn’t know before, they should know today that no amount of federal power can stop the will of the people,” he said.
