Nigerian singer cum politician, Bankole Wellington, popularly known as Banky W has been declared the winner of the PDP primary rerun for the Eti-Osa constituency House of Representatives ticket in the 2023 general election.
Controversies had trailed the earlier contest that was conducted on May 24, which prompted a rerun to be scheduled for Monday.
In the primary rerun, which held in Lagos on Monday, Banky W polled 24 votes while his contender Mr Sam Aiboni, a legal practitioner, polled five votes.
Banky W celebrating his victory posted: “While we are grateful for our success at the primaries, we are completely heartbroken at the state of our nation.”
He said: “I want to thank the Leaders of the People’s Democratic Party, the PDP, for encouraging me to join the family, and empowering me to stand on our great platform.
“I want to thank our party members and delegates for accepting me, for trusting me, and for giving me the go-ahead – in a landslide – to represent the great constituency of Eti-Osa, Lagos.
“I want to thank my very formidable competitor Barrister Sam Aiboni – we are not opponents within the PDP; we are brothers on the same side, and I hope that our shared love for our community will build a bridge for us to be able work together for the progress and prosperity of our people.
“I want to thank my family and friends, donors and volunteers, prayer warriors and well-wishers – words fail to describe how grateful I feel that you consider me worthy of your blessing, belief and support.
“I also want to thank the love of my life, my wife, for holding my hand and standing by my side.
“Most importantly, I want to thank the almighty God – for the gift of life, and purpose. I am nothing without His Grace.
“Our journey is far from over, this was a great step one but our work has just begun.
The road ahead is long – I hope we recognize that this is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.
“The terrain will be tough – I hope we realize that we are stronger together, and there is no obstacle or opposition that we cannot overcome.
I hope we remember that this is not about me – this is about all of us.
“Our legislative agenda will be a collaboration between all of the stakeholders in our communities… fully focused on the needs we have in education, healthcare, gender equity, youth employment and economic empowerment – creating a more conducive environment that we can be proud to live in, raise our children, and grow our businesses.
“EtiOsa is already arguably the most progressive & enlightened constituency. But good enough is not good enough.
“This is about all of us fighting for Eti-Osa to be better. It’s time for us to look in the mirror. “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. And we can do this, if we do it together. This is more than a campaign. This is a movement. Please join us.”
