Lagos Focus News acknowledges the press statement issued by the Office of the Executive Chairman of Ajeromi-Ifelodun Local Government on November 21, 2025, concerning our report titled:
“Ajeromi LG Under Fire After Budget Retreat Photo Appears to Promote Underperforming Lawmaker.”
As a responsible and registered Media Organisation with a duty to the public, we wish to clarify the following:
1. Our Report Was Based on a Publicly Circulated Photograph Released by the LGA’s Media Team
The image which generated public outcry was not fabricated, doctored, or misrepresented.
It was posted by the Local Government’s official media handlers during the period of the budget retreat and carried campaign messaging involving a serving federal lawmaker and even posted on the Face book wall of the MHR clearly captioned by him as an endorsement.
Our news story accurately captured public reactions, including concerns from constituents, civil society stakeholders, and opposition voices who questioned the appropriateness of political endorsement activities being displayed in connection with an event funded by taxpayers.
2. The LG Has Confirmed the Core Issue: Political Endorsement Took Place During the Retreat Period
In its press release, the LG admitted that the endorsement occurred “at the gala night.”
While the LG argues that this makes the act permissible, public concern has always been about the proximity of political campaign activities to an official governance function not about the technical time of day it occurred.
The question constituents of Ajeromi Ifelodun raised remains valid:
Should an official government retreat,budgeted and executed with public resources be used, in any form, to promote political aspirations of elected officials?
3. Our Report Did Not Accuse the LG of Hijacking the Budget Session for the endorsement
Our publication clearly stated that the picture appeared to promote a lawmaker.
We did not state that budget deliberations were halted, interrupted, or replaced with political events.
Opposition Party members that responded on the matter simply questioned, as well as many residents also did, the appropriateness and optics of merging political solidarity gestures with an official retreat.
These concerns are legitimate, democratic, and grounded in public interest.
4. Listing Achievements Does Not Address the Ethical Question Raised
We acknowledge that the local government listed numerous completed projects.
However, these achievements whether verified or not, do not speak to the central issue that triggered public debate.
The concern is not about performance.
The concern is about the independence of governance spaces from partisan political activities.
5. Lagos Focus News Rejects the Attempts to Label Credible Journalism as “Propaganda”
We stand firmly by our publication and reject characterizations such as “malicious,” “misleading,” or “sensational.”
Our report was factual, balanced, and supported by verifiable public comments.
Our duty, under the Nigerian Constitution and the Nigerian Media Code of Ethics, is to:
hold public institutions accountable,
reflect the concerns of citizens, and
question the use of public resources.
That responsibility will not be diminished by labels or political pressure.
6. We Maintain That Transparency Requires Engagement, Not Hostility
Instead of attacking our free press style, the local government could have addressed the following open questions that emerged from public discourse:
Who authorised the political photograph at an official retreat?
Why was it disseminated on official platforms?
What guidelines exist to prevent the mixing of governance and political campaigning?
These are governance-related …
Finally, Lagos Focus News has clarified that the opinions featured in its recent report did not originate from the medium itself. According to the organisation, all viewpoints published in the story were attributed to their rightful owners, in line with generally acceptable editorial policy as a non-political, non-denominational, and non-partisan news platform.
Our outlet expressed concern that some “unversed media aides” had attempted to misrepresent the report by crediting third-party opinions to Lagos Focus News. The organisation said such misinterpretations stemmed from the inability of poorly trained aides to “read between the lines,” we hereby stress that our role was limited to reporting verified information and views from stakeholders
