Suspected political thugs loyal to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday night attacked the campaign office of the Deputy Governor and candidate of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), Agboola Ajayi.
The security personnel attached to the Secretariat, Mr Gbenga Olayoriju, who narrated the incident to journalists in Akure, said the thugs, five in number, came in an APC branded vehicle.
According to him, the thugs who wielded several dangerous weapons attacked the secretariat and destroyed the billboard and other valuables at the premises.
Adeyoriju recounted that the suspected thugs who came in the night shot sporadically into the air to scare anybody who dared to challenge them.
He added that they used the butts of their guns to destroy the billboard in front of the campaign office and threatened to kill him and his colleague if they made any attempt to stop them from carrying out their actions.
The Director-General of the Campaign of Agbo/Gboye Campaign Organization, Dr Kola Ademujimi, who confirmed the incident, described the attacks on campaign offices of the candidate as worrisome in recent time.
Aside from the attack in the campaign secretariat in Akure, Ademujimi said political thugs loyal to APC and Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu attacked ZLP members in Idanre during the campaign of the governor on Tuesday.
“Akeredolu’s thugs are threatening the lives and properties of members of ZLP and those of other parties in various parts of the state.
“They destroyed chairs, tables, and inflicted injuries on our supporters at their ward meeting in Ile-Oluji yesterday.
“They also destroyed Agboola Ajayi’s billboards at our campaign office in Akure. They destroyed our flags and posters in Idanre during Aketi/APC ‘s campaign tour of Idanre yesterday.
“They attacked leaders of another party during their Local Government meeting in Owo yesterday. I think they are out to cause mayhem even before the October Governorship election in Ondo State.”
Ademujimi called on security agencies to live up to their expectations before the opposition parties are forced to act in self defense.
But the state APC Publicity Secretary, Mr. Alex Kalejaiye, dispelled the allegations against the party and governor, saying the opposition party was trying to blackmail them.
Kalejaiye noted that the ruling party, APC, had unraveled a plan by the ZLP and other major opposition parties to destroy their properties and blame it on the ruling party.
“The unholy alliance is informed by the fact parties perceive in APC a common enemy because they are jittery over the rising profile of the ruling APC, on account of performance.
“To achieve this, it was further gathered, the parties were to lay at the doorstep of the ruling party all forms of violence and acts of thuggery that would be carried out by their sponsored agents.”
The APC chieftain urged security agencies to be vigilant and ensure that perpetrators of any form of destructive acts and violations of positive conducts are handled with all seriousness.
“As a responsible and responsive political organisation, the APC appreciates and is committed to peaceful campaigns and rancour-free gubernatorial election. The party abhors anything that could inflict pains on the good people of the state.”
He said “the APC encourages other parties tow the path of peace, and caution their members to discard untoward attitude of hooliganism and recklessness in their operations.
“Political leaders will do well to avoid making inflammatory statements that are capable of spurring the followers in unjustifiable and uncivilised actions.”
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