Lagos 2027: Governorship debate begins in Lekki

By Olasunkanmi Akoni The 2027 Lagos State governorship debate has commenced in Lekki, with key candidates taking the stage to present their programmes and address issues affecting residents of the state. The debate, organised by the Nigeria Debate Consultative, is a collaborative initiative involving Channels Television, TVC News, News Central, Inspiration FM, Cool FM, Vanguard Media and Punch Newspapers.

The organisers said the exercise is aimed at promoting credible journalism, democratic accountability and informed electoral choices ahead of the 2027 governorship election. The candidates are expected to present their visions for Lagos State and respond to questions on five key areas: the economy and cost of living; transportation and infrastructure; flooding and the environment; healthcare and social welfare; and security and accountability.

Under the debate guidelines, each candidate is allowed three minutes for opening remarks, two minutes to respond to questions and one minute for rebuttals. The candidates are not given prior access to the questions. The participating candidates, selected through what the organisers described as an impartial and transparent survey, are Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour of the African Democratic Congress, ADC; Dr Olufemi Hamzat of the All Progressives Congress, APC; Funsho Doherty of the National Democratic Congress, NDC; and Adedoyin Doherty of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Viewers have been encouraged to join the conversation online using the hashtags #LagosGovernorshipDebate, #LagosDecides and #NigeriaDebateConsultative.