Nollywood actor-turned-politician Desmond Elliot has apologised to Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, after losing the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket to seek another term in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
In a video obtained, Elliot was seen kneeling and later prostrating before Gbajabiamila as he expressed regret over his conduct during the APC primary for Surulere Constituency I.
Addressing Gbajabiamila as “Daddy”, the lawmaker said he had been misguided during the contest, accepted the outcome of the primary and pledged renewed allegiance to the leadership of Lagos State’s Governance Advisory Council (GAC).
“Sorry, I have no excuse, I have no… nothing. Other than to say I’m deeply sorry sir. In the culture, we prostrate. E ma binu, Daddy. E ma binu sir (Please, don’t be annoyed, Daddy. Please, don’t be annoyed, sir),” Elliot pleaded.
Gbajabiamila, who remained seated during the encounter, urged Elliot to get up and indicated that there was no need for him to remain on the ground.
Elliot has represented Surulere Constituency I in the Lagos State House of Assembly since winning the seat on the APC platform. His political rise was closely associated with Gbajabiamila, who previously represented the same constituency in the House of Representatives before becoming Speaker and later Chief of Staff to Tinubu.
The latest reconciliation comes months after tensions between Elliot and the party leadership escalated following the APC primary in May.
Elliot withdrew from the primary midway, alleging intimidation and political pressure against his supporters. He subsequently rejected the outcome and indicated that he would pursue the matter through the party’s internal appeal process.
He eventually lost the ticket to Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, who polled 11,385 votes against Elliot’s 270 votes. Odunuga-Bakare was widely believed to have Gbajabiamila’s backing.
The disagreement between the two politicians, however, predates the primary. In May, Gbajabiamila disclosed that Elliot’s alleged involvement in an unsuccessful move to remove Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa had nearly cost him his position as Tinubu’s Chief of Staff.
Gbajabiamila said Tinubu had confronted him over the matter, questioning whether Elliot, whom he had significantly mentored politically, was his “boy” and referring to intelligence reports that allegedly linked the actor-turned-lawmaker to the faction seeking Obasa’s removal.
According to Gbajabiamila, he initially defended Elliot, but Tinubu maintained his position based on the intelligence available to him.
Three days later, Gbajabiamila said, the Director-General of the Department of State Services warned him that his own name was being mentioned as the alleged sponsor behind the impeachment effort because of his close relationship with Elliot.
Gbajabiamila made the disclosure publicly at a stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos, in remarks that signalled a major deterioration in his political relationship with Elliot.
The latest apology and reconciliation now appear to mark an attempt to mend the strained relationship following Elliot’s loss of the APC ticket.
