Popular actor and Lagos lawmaker Desmond Elliot says he is not backing down from the Surulere APC primaries, insisting no party leader asked him to step aside despite mounting political tension.

Desmond Elliot has broken his silence over the ongoing political drama surrounding the Surulere APC primaries, making it clear that he has no intention of stepping down from the race, cbinews.tv reports.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Tuesday, the Lagos lawmaker dismissed rumours that he had been pressured by party leaders to withdraw in favour of another aspirant, Barakat Odunuga-Bakare.

According to Elliot, not even the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu and his political mentor, Femi Gbajabiamila, asked him to leave the contest.

“Because I was not asked by him, my leader, never,” Elliot stated.

The actor-turned-politician revealed that he even travelled to Abuja after declaring his intention to contest again just to personally inform Gbajabiamila.

“I told him, ‘Oga, I am here again,’” he said.

Elliot maintained that his decision to seek a fourth term is based on his commitment to serving the people of Surulere Constituency I, which he has represented since 2015.

He also said he still enjoys strong grassroots support and believes the final decision should be left to voters.

“The President has said, let the people decide. If they want you to continue, you continue,” he added.

The lawmaker further disclosed that he hopes to secure a principal officer role in the Lagos State House of Assembly if re-elected.

However, Elliot alleged that members of his political camp are currently being intimidated ahead of the APC primary election in Surulere.

“We are being intimidated in Surulere. If you know you are popular on the ground, do not intimidate the people,” he said.

Elliot also used the interview to deny claims that he played a major role in the attempted impeachment of Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa earlier in 2025.

The allegation resurfaced after remarks made by Gbajabiamila during an APC stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos, where he reportedly suggested that Elliot was among those behind the move against Obasa.

Responding to the claims, Elliot insisted he was outside Nigeria when the impeachment saga began and only signed the document after returning home and discovering that most lawmakers had already appended their signatures.

“I did not mastermind anything,” he said.

“The only thing I did was append my signature when I came back and saw that almost all of us had already signed.”

Elliot explained that he initially believed the move had the backing of the APC leadership, but later learnt that President Tinubu neither approved nor had prior knowledge of the impeachment attempt.

He admitted he was shocked by Gbajabiamila’s public comments, especially considering their long-standing political relationship.

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