Following Obi’s victory over Tinubu in Lagos during the 2023 elections, MC Oluomo addressed the public with a stark warning aimed at the Igbo community. He bluntly advised that if they were unwilling to support the APC, they should abstain from voting altogether. His message was clear and uncompromising, framing any vote against the APC as an act of betrayal punishable by consequences. Although the police summoned him for questioning, the encounter appeared more symbolic than substantive, culminating in a perfunctory apology that many dismissed as rehearsed.
When election day arrived, the Igbo faced brutal intimidation and violence at polling stations across Eti-Osa, Ojo, Amuwo-Odofin, and other areas. Numerous Igbo voters sustained injuries severe enough to require hospitalization. The enforcement of this intimidation was orchestrated by MC Oluomo’s affiliates, while law enforcement agencies remained passive. Despite these events, INEC declared the elections credible, and Oluomo alongside his allies celebrated what was essentially a victory for political thuggery. The absence of accountability only emboldened this violent strategy.
At the time, MC Oluomo held the position of state chairman for the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), an organization that commands control over Lagos’s agberos-informal transport operators often linked to street-level enforcement. This affiliation provided a steady pool of muscle for political intimidation. Later in 2023, Oluomo transferred leadership to Alhaji Adekunle Mustapha, known as Sego, a seasoned enforcer with a history of confrontations. Sego inherited not only the chairmanship but also the expectation to maintain unwavering loyalty to the APC political machinery.
Looking ahead to 2027, Chairman Sego has declared that Lagos will be a one-party state under the APC, warning that votes for any opposition will not be tolerated. His threats were explicit: anyone opposing Tinubu and the APC would face lethal consequences. While he did not explicitly single out the Igbo, the context and demographic realities make it clear that his warning was directed primarily at them, as the Igbo constitute a significant portion of Lagos’s non-APC electorate. Sego ominously stated, “What happened in 2023 will be child’s play… Anyone who refuses to vote APC in 2027, we’ll deal with them decisively.”
These declarations are not isolated provocations but a revival of a familiar and dangerous playbook. Following Sego’s inflammatory remarks, the Department of State Services (DSS) summoned him for questioning on charges of insulting certain groups. However, before the public was aware, he was released, and in a move reminiscent of MC Oluomo’s earlier performance, Sego appeared before cameras wearing a DSS visitor’s badge, denied his threats, and issued a questionable apology, claiming he was misunderstood. The DSS has remained silent since.
For the Igbo community in Lagos, still bearing the scars of the 2023 electoral violence, Sego’s threats are far from empty rhetoric. They represent a renewed and explicit call for ethnic exclusion and intimidation at the polls. Sego’s reference to political figures like Aregbesola, without naming the Igbo directly, echoes earlier warnings from Tinubu’s spokesperson Onanuga, who cautioned that the Igbo’s rejection of Tinubu in Lagos would not be tolerated in future elections. Additionally, some Lagos traditional rulers have openly opposed free and fair elections, framing the political participation of settlers as an economic and cultural threat to indigenous populations. Sego’s outburst, therefore, is a calculated political statement backed by influential interests, not the reckless words of a lone agitator.
While Sego’s threats are alarming and his capacity for violence significant, he is not the root cause of the problem. The real issue lies in the apparent indifference of the president, the undisputed political godfather of Lagos. Despite the fresh wounds from the 2023 violence, the administration has allowed political thuggery to flourish unchecked, exacerbating ethnic tensions rather than calming them. The perpetrators of the 2023 attacks were never held accountable, and the government’s silence has effectively condoned the rising hostility between the Igbo and Yoruba communities on social media and beyond.
Sego’s public threats are likely a reflection of sentiments harbored by those in power behind closed doors. His role is that of an enforcer, a visible agent of a broader political agenda that tolerates, if not encourages, ethnic exclusion and intimidation. The president’s failure to decisively condemn or punish such behavior implicates him morally and politically.
As the leader of the nation and the paramount figure in Lagos politics, President Tinubu bears the responsibility to uphold democratic principles and foster inclusivity. Winning Lagos through intimidation and disenfranchisement of any ethnic group undermines the city’s status as a vibrant, multicultural hub and threatens national unity. The deliberate exclusion of any community from the electoral process is not only a violation of constitutional rights but a dangerous precedent that could destabilize the country.
When government officials or their proxies openly threaten violence against political opponents, they place the president in a position of moral accountability. His reluctance to act decisively against these threats signals tacit approval and emboldens further divisiveness. The president’s authority is compromised when his supporters resort to violence to secure electoral victories, especially in his home state.
The Igbo, historically marginalized and dispersed across Nigeria, are particularly vulnerable to such political violence. Their relatively smaller numbers compared to other ethnic groups make them easy targets for intimidation. Yet, the president must recognize that even seemingly minor acts of exclusion can have profound and lasting consequences, much like a small irritant causing significant harm. Lagos must continue to be a melting pot of diverse cultures and a beacon of opportunity for all its residents.
In the recent local government elections, voter turnout was low, with many, especially the Igbo, abstaining due to fears of targeted violence. This already cast doubt on the legitimacy of the electoral process before Sego’s threats further escalated tensions. In light of these developments, the Igbo community must demand explicit protection from the president to safeguard their constitutional rights and ensure their safety.
If the concept of One Nigeria is merely a facade used to extract resources without genuine inclusion, the president owes the Igbo an honest explanation. If it is intended as a superficial gesture to mask systemic domination, that too must be acknowledged. The president’s ongoing silence in the face of these threats borders on negligence and could be interpreted as complicity. The Igbo and other ethnic minorities in Lagos are not seeking special favors-they are asserting their right to participate freely and safely in the democratic process.
Excluding any ethnic group from elections is a grave violation of human rights and electoral integrity. It risks transforming democratic exercises into ethnic pogroms with catastrophic consequences. The responsibility now rests with President Tinubu to act decisively. History will remember how he responds to this critical test of leadership.