Wide range intrigues are being played out, in Lagos and in Abuja, by those angling for the Alausa office of Governor Babatunde Fashola at the end of his second term next year.
They have fast forwarded strategies to outdo one another, and their party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), is feeling the heat.
Fashola is also a member of the APC.
The field was initially left open but the party hierarchy, after consultations, decided to zone the governorship to the Lagos East Senatorial District, which stretches from Kosofe to Ikorodu and Epe and their territories.
TheNiche learnt that as a result of this, some aspirants have ‘switched their residency’ to the favoured zone.
Among the contestants are Senators Ganiyu Solomon and Gbenga Ashafa; House of Representatives members, Femi Gbajabiamila (Minority Leader) and Abike Dabiri; and Lagos Assembly Speaker, Adeyemi Ikuforiji.
They also include former Environment Commissioner and University lecturer, Muiz Banire; Works and Infrastructure Commissioner, Femi Hamzat; and former Health Commissioner, Leke Pitan.
Sources said Ikuforiji and Banire have never hidden their interest in the job.
Solomon eyed it in 2007 until Fashola emerged the preferred candidate of former Governor Bola Tinubu. He is still keen.
With his experience as former Council Chairman, House of Representatives member and currently a Senator, Solomon is eminently qualified for the position.
But the zoning seems to be his albatross as he represents Lagos West in the Senate.
The man has his joker, any way, as he now claims to come from Ikorodu which is part of Lagos East Senatorial District.
“He is still in the race because he says he is from Ikorodu,” a source told TheNiche.
However, the claim does not gel with other aspirants, especially those from Lagos East.
The ambition of Kuforiji is also reportedly causing ripples. His antagonists hinge their grievances on what they described as “his inconsistency” about his Epe residency.
He had represented Epe in the state Assembly from 2003 but changed his residency to Ikeja in the 2011 election.
His opponents pointed out that he switched residency because he was not totally accepted in Epe where voters viewed him as “not performing up to the expectation of his position as Speaker.
“He represents Ikeja, which is Lagos Central. Now that the governorship is zoned to Lagos East, he wants to claim it and some people are not happy with that.”
Those the zoning arrangement may also disqualify are Banire (Mushin, Lagos West),
Gbajabiamila (Surulere, Lagos West) and Pitan (Lagos Island, Lagos Central).
Ashafa and Hamzat are from Lagos East but face competition from Dabiri, which narrows their chances.