The pervasive intra-party conflict in the Osun state chapter of the All Progressive Congress, APC, once again, recorded a worrisome development on Monday.
A shooting incident was recorded in Osogbo, the state capital but there were no casualties.
The state government and the state APC faction loyal to the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola have disagreed over the cause of the incident and those who sponsored the thugs .
Mrs. Funke Egbemode, who is the Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, had in a statement spiced with innuendos alleged that some unnamed persons who she referred to as ‘misguided cowards’ have ‘invaded’ the state adding that they have brought thugs to foment trouble in Osogbo.
Egbemode warned that anyone, irrespective of office or station, caught disrupting the peace of Osun would be made to pay the penalty.
‘We have credible reports that some misguided cowards have invaded Osogbo, the Osun state capital with armed thugs to foment trouble. These miscreants and their kingpin started shooting as they raced through the town.
Their interest is simply to attempt to thwart the peace of the state and create fear in the minds of the good people of Osun counting on a long-lost influence.
The Government of Osun hereby warns that there are no sacred cows in the state. No one is above the law here regardless of their past glories or future aspirations. Security agencies have been well briefed about the activities of these mischief makers, who have set themselves on a collision course with the law.
Anyone, irrespective of office or station, caught disrupting the peace of Osun would be made to pay the penalty.
Parents and guardians are advised to warn their children and wards not to allow themselves to be used by evil men to achieve their sinister motives’she submitted.
Comrade Abiodun Agboola, who is the Publicity Secretary of the state APC faction led by Alhaji Razaq Salinsile, however in a statement made available to pulsenews.com.ng on Monday night accused the state government of promoting half truths.
He also alleged that the shooting incident was an attempt on Aregbesola’s life.
‘Our attention has been drawn to deliberate and criminal misinformation being spread by the Governor Adegboyega Oyetola administration to change the narrative on the attack on the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola today in Osogbo.
We note the deliberate falsehood being peddled by agents of darkness who have consistently been using the state power to terrorize members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who are not in the same camp with Governor Oyetola for some time now.
It is callous and unfortunate that the Minister is being harassed with a view to shutting him out of the state before the guber primary election.
Aregbesola’s convoy was attacked by some armed political thugs at Orisunmibare, Osogbo while coming from Ilesa at about 5:30pm today.
The gun-wielding political hoodlums waylaid his convoy and started shooting sporadically on seeing the Minister standing through the open roof of his car and waving to a mammoth crowd who were hailing and jubilating .
Jubilant residents, who had followed Aregbesola’s convoy , scampered for safety to escape being hit by stray bullet.
A team of combined security agents comprising the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Immigration Service and Department of State Security officers , who were part of Aregbesola’s convoy, alighted from their vehicles and started shooting in a bid to scare away the armed thugs.
For about twenty minutes, the Old Garage Area was thrown into panic as traders and road users ran helter-skelter as a result of resounding gunshots from the thugs and the security agents.
May we note that the hoodlums were led by Oyetola’s head of political thugs, Asiri Eniba, apparently at the instance of his sponsor.
Consistently, the Oyetola government had been on the game of attacking members of The Osun Progressives (TOP), which has the backing of the Minister.
It is unfortunate that the Oyetola government who had always wanted to tarnish the good name of the Minister quickly put up a report, deceiving many that the Minister ‘invaded’ Osogbo and sent it to the unsuspecting media for use.
It will interest members of the public to as a matter of fact, note that Aregbesola had entered Osogbo through the Ilesa Garage axis and, as usually demanded by the people, he stood through the open roof of his car waving to the people, passing through Itaolokan, Ojaba, Station road and Orisunmbare with mammoth crowd swarming on his convoy and without any incident until the convoy was attacked at the old garage by the Asiri Eniba gang .
It is important note that the stretch of the Minister’s trip which had been peaceful was about 10km without any incident until around old garage area which is the base of the chief thug.
Safe for the mischief of the Oyetola’s government to unjustly run the Minister out of town, simply because of their mortal fear of his popularity, no person has been wounded in any of the Minister’s outings.
May we ask the mischief-maker-government to produce the dead bodies of the people claimed to have died today in Osogbo. The Oyetola administration should burry its head in shame.
It is only a cowardly and irresponsible government that will be scaring away the people it is ruling for whatever reason.
It is a shame for the Oyetola-led-administration that Osun, which was adjudged as the third most-safest state in Nigeria before Oyetola became governor is now a state where political violence and insecurity now thrive.
Today’s attempt on the Minister’s life is a confirmation that Osun is no longer a safe state. We can only pray that the Almighty would keep the good people of Osun state and her well-wishers safe’ Agboola said.
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