Lagos ADC candidate pledges focus on living standards and budget integrity

Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the African Democratic Congress candidate for governor of Lagos State, says he would prioritise improving residents’ quality of life rather than treating government as a business. Rhodes-Vivour made the comments while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday. He said integrity distinguished him from the party currently in power and pledged not to inflate government budgets if elected.

He alleged that some budget items were priced far above their actual cost. As examples, he referred to a generator allegedly listed at 160 million rather than 16 million and to a reported reference to air freshener costing 2 billion, which he said the governor had described as a typographical error involving 20 million. The candidate said Lagosians would support him because he had remained consistent in his ideas for moving the state forward.

He also rejected suggestions that questions about his Yoruba language skills or family origin should dominate the campaign. Rhodes-Vivour said he would campaign in Yoruba when necessary, but argued that the central issues were the problems affecting Lagos residents. He specifically referred to traffic and said attempts to focus on language or heritage distracted from those concerns.

He described his running mate, Babatunde Gbadamosi, as a “fantastic” and brilliant person who had been consistent and could help bring change to Lagos. Rhodes-Vivour contested the 2023 governorship election on the Labour Party platform and was credited with 312,329 votes, behind Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s 762,134. He said he did not accept the figures, alleging intimidation and voter suppression, and maintained that the result did not reflect Lagosians’ wishes.

He said the ADC was better prepared for the 2027 election than it had been in 2023 and would not be intimidated or bullied. His remarks were campaign claims and allegations about the previous election; the supplied report does not include a response from the governor or the APC to them.