Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has recounted how his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, abandoned his governorship ambition in 2018 after party leaders asked him to step aside in his favour.
Sanwo-Olu said Hamzat had the experience, political backing and public service record to contest the election but chose to support him, agreeing to become his running mate about five weeks after withdrawing from the race.
The governor disclosed this in a post on his X account on Friday, describing Hamzat’s decision as an uncommon act of selflessness that he had never forgotten.
“Back in September 2018, Femi Hamzat wanted to be Governor of Lagos State. He had thirteen years of public service under Asiwaju and BRF, with the record and backing to win. Then party leaders asked him to step aside for me.
“It takes a rare man to put down what he wants without nursing a grudge. Femi shook my hand and five weeks later, agreed to run beside me. I have never forgotten that,” he wrote.
Hamzat withdrew from the Lagos governorship race in September 2018 and urged his supporters to back Sanwo-Olu in the All Progressives Congress governorship primary.
Reflecting on their seven-year working relationship since assuming office in 2019, Sanwo-Olu said he had spent 2,711 days working alongside his deputy without ever questioning his loyalty.
“In many states, deputies are kept in reserve. On day one, Femi promised to be the best deputy governor in Lagos history. He kept his word. In seven years, there has not been a single day I wondered whose side he was on. We have had one government, one direction, and one voice,” he said.
The governor also credited Hamzat with playing significant roles in the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the delivery of major infrastructure projects, including the Blue and Red rail lines and the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
He said Hamzat’s engineering background had been valuable in assessing infrastructure projects, noting that his deputy regularly asked technical questions before projects were completed and participated in key decisions of the administration.
Sanwo-Olu further highlighted Hamzat’s previous public service experience, including his tenure as commissioner for Science and Technology under former Governor Bola Tinubu and commissioner for Works and Infrastructure under former Governor Babatunde Fashola.
Describing Lagos’ political leadership as a continuous transition, the governor said successive administrations had built on the foundations laid by their predecessors.
“Lagos runs on a relay system. The baton is never passed to a runner standing still. You run at full speed inside the exchange zone, together, before the pass. That is how Lagos has been governed for 27 years, from Asiwaju to BRF, to Ambode, to me,” he said.
He also cited Hamzat’s contributions to the construction of the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge and the digitisation of government processes in the state.
“Femi is a deputy governor like no other. He built the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge under Fashola, digitized government under Asiwaju and holds a doctorate in engineering. His father served Lateef Jakande. This is in his blood,” Sanwo-Olu said.
The governor’s remarks came as Hamzat unveiled his governorship manifesto, titled The Lagos PROMISE, ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
Sanwo-Olu described his deputy’s ambition as the next phase of a leadership transition that began in 1999, urging Lagos residents to support him.
Addressing criticism that Lagos continued to draw its political leaders from the same circle, the governor defended the state’s leadership succession model, arguing that experienced public servants should be given the opportunity to build on existing achievements.
“Critics say Lagos keeps choosing from the same pool. I say Lagos trains its people. With major projects underway and a master plan stretching to 2052, this is not the time to experiment.
“Lagos does not hand the baton to a man standing still. Today, you have seen the man who is already running. Let us move forward together with The Lagos PROMISE,” he said.
