Obafemi Hamzat, the deputy governor of Lagos, has cautioned Labour Party followers and party faithful to refrain from using underhanded methods that won't advance their cause.
In a statement released on Sunday in Lagos by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Tunde Alao, Hamzat issued the warning.
According to news sources, during the #Obidient Rally in Lagos on Saturday, a photo of a person with the caption "The Lagos State Deputy Governor's Son Femi Hamzat joins the obidient rally in favour of Peter Obi" went popular on social media.
The individual in the picture "is neither the deputy governor's son nor his relative," the statement claims.
“The viral message is another mischievous, false and malicious attempt to cause friction between the deputy governor and his admirers and loyalists across the nation.
“Dr Hamzat has a reputation of commitment and loyalty to the Sanwo-Olu-led administration and the All Progressives Congress.
“His support is for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima. Our party and all our supporters are working hard to ensure that our candidates get the votes of Nigerians and ours is not about bogus statistics and lies.”
Labour Party supporters held processions in four major locations in Lagos last Saturday to show their backing for the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
Some of the party’s supporters circulated photographs claiming one of the youth at the march in Lekki is Hamzat’s son.
The actual person turned out to be a social media user, @Elkrosmediahub.
The statement also added that any attempt to denigrate the deputy governor’s character by spewing falsehood about his family would remain a vain and futile attempt until eternity.
It advised the supporters of the Labour Party to get serious with their campaigns and desist from cheap tactics that would not yield any political gains.
“We hope that Nigerians will detect these tendencies to deceive and see it for what it is. It is too late in the day to keep lying to Nigerians. It won’t work.” the statement reads.