The residents who cut across the young and elderly and mostly victims of demolition exercises carried out by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration in Lagos State, accused Tinubu’s government of making them poorer and rendering them homeless.
Hundreds of residents of Oworonshoki community in the Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos on Sunday joined the African Action Congress (AAC) after reaffirming that hunger and hardship in the government of President Bola Tinubu and All Progressives Congress (APC) must be tackled politically.
The residents who cut across the young and elderly and mostly victims of demolition exercises carried out by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration in Lagos State, accused Tinubu’s government of making them poorer and rendering them homeless.
The new members were received into the AAC by the Acting Ward Chairman in Oworonshoki, Opeyemi Ogunlami; former Lagos AAC Secretary, Towolawi Jamiu; Lagos AAC Woman Leader, Olaide Olurinde; Lagos AAC Publicity Secretary, Osatohamhen Ebhohon, and Lagos AAC Organising Secretary, Folayemi Akinfolarin, in a ceremony held in Oworonshoki community.
The Acting Ward Chairman, Ogunlami, who commended the new members for making the decision, stressed that Nigerians are in a period in which they must unite to fight Tinubu/APC.
According to him, they have hijacked Nigeria and turned the country’s collective resources to their private properties.
He enlightened the new members about the ideology and manifesto of the party which is centered on systemic change, saying, “That’s taking our collective resources back from the few ruling elites and putting it under the democratic ownership, management and control of the people (working class masses).”
The new members also took the AAC oath of allegiance which is a fundamental principle in the AAC constitution for new members.
The oath of allegiance process was led by the immediate past Secretary of Lagos AAC, Towolawi Jamiu and the new members were asked to recite it.
The process also includes the distribution of membership cards of the party to the new members.
Some of the new members who spoke after the inauguration are Harrison Cole, Peter Wilfred, Folasade Ogundipe and Fatimo Olasujo.
The new members who were all excited to have joined the AAC described the party as the only alternative to the APC, Peoples Democratic Party and others such as Labour Party and others.
Harrison Cole, whose house in Oworonshoki was demolished in 2023 by Governor Sanwo-Olu’s government, said the AAC and the Take It Back Movement were the only political party and movement that stood with them during the ordeal and still standing with them after their houses were demolished.
He noted that the AAC has demonstrated leadership and solidarity with the oppressed in Oworonshoki and promised to help deliver Oworonshoki to the AAC during the forthcoming local government elections.
Olasujo said her house would have been demolished if not for the timely intervention of the Take It Back Movement and the AAC.
She said her building was the next in line to be demolished during the demolition exercise carried out by the Lagos State Government but the intervention of the AAC stopped the entire demolition exercises.
The new members thanked the leadership of the Lagos AAC and especially the leadership of the Oworoshoki AAC Ward for giving them the opportunity to be part of the AAC family.
They promised to mobilise their families, friends and neighbours into the AAC and make sure the party takes over the entire Kosofe Local Government Area.