Banky W wins primary election ticket in Lagos

Born Olubankole Wellington, the musician beat his closest opponent Sam Aiboni by a landslide, polling 28 out of 31 votes cast by delegates at the primaries. Aiboni polled three votes, and returning officer Ayodele Kazeem, who declared the results, described the process as transparent and fair.

“I am overwhelmed by the support of my constituency, the people, the ward chairmen, the leaders and the chieftains of the party,” Banky W said. “I feel the support even from the grassroots. Honestly, I can’t be happier than I am now. The real work begins now, the primaries are just the start and thankfully, we have the grace of God with us; we move.” 

Banky W will be hoping to win the Eti-Osa constituency seat, his primary victory arriving months after declaring his plans to run for political office next year, noting that citizens “can no longer settle for candidates who feel entitled to their place in government. We need candidates who will earn and treasure their right to serve. As a nation, we need innovation and reform. But reform will happen when enough of us with like minds, who have the best interest of the nation at heart, are in government.”

He added: “The problems in Nigeria are from the top down but the solutions are from the bottom up and so some of us must infiltrate the major platforms that exist in order to build an army of like minds who will enter government with the same agenda.”

This will be Banky W’s second attempt at a seat at the House of Representatives following a failed shot on the youth-led Modern Democratic Party ticket in 2019.

Many of Banky W’s colleagues in the Nigerian music industry have taken to social media to congratulate the singer. Notable among them are Afrobeats star Davido and rapper MI Abaga. 

 “Congrats Banky W”, Davido tweeted. “You have my support! Don’t sit at home and complain, get up and make a change.” Rapper MI Abaga posted: “Many will talk, few will do. Congrats @BankyW.”

Meanwhile, fellow Nigerian musician J Martins is vying for the Arochukwu/Ohafia seat in Abia State. Next year’s elections in Nigeria will comprise presidential, vice-presidential, gubernatorial, Senate and House of Representative polls on 25 February and 11 March.