There was a time when Akinwumi Ambode appeared destined for enduring relevance. The urbane, disciplined technocrat entered Lagos politics promising efficiency over theatrics. Among the middle class and business elite, he earned praise as a governor more concerned with execution than political drama. Then came the humiliation that altered his trajectory forever.
In 2018, Ambode became the first sitting Lagos governor to lose a party primary. He secured roughly 72,000 votes against Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s 970,000. The margin was not a defeat but a public political disinheritance. A sitting governor armed with the powers of incumbency could not secure the blessing of the Governor’s Advisory Council and party leader Bola Tinubu. The message echoed far beyond Lagos: performance alone does not guarantee survival in Nigerian politics.
Since leaving office in 2019, Ambode has existed in a curious political twilight, being neither fully absent nor genuinely present. Occasionally, his name resurfaces in speculation: a federal appointment here, a strategic comeback there, a quiet reconciliation whispered in elite circles.
Public appearances with President Tinubu since 2023 have fueled rumours that he might be rehabilitated within the APC. Groups like the “Ambode Comeback Crusaders” actively lobby for his return, citing his record on infrastructure.
Yet the long-anticipated resurrection never truly arrived. Unlike many fallen politicians who reinvent themselves through defiance, Ambode chose restraint. He neither launched a rebellion nor publicly challenged the establishment that sidelined him. He retreated with uncommon calm, maintaining a dignified silence that some interpret as maturity and others as political surrender.
In 2025, viral claims suggested he would defect to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to run for governor. Ambode quickly distanced himself, reaffirming his APC loyalty and endorsing Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. That statement closed the door on opposition speculation but did not open any new doors within his own party.
The Governor’s Advisory Council remains a significant hurdle. Their endorsement is critical for any APC candidate in Lagos, and no such endorsement has emerged for Ambode. His name carries weight in elite circles, but when political machinery is in the room, weight does not win primaries. And that machinery has moved on.
Leave a comment