From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu and the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to caution Governor Ademola Adeleke, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against unleashing violence on its members.
Speaking at a press conference in Osogbo, yesterday, the APC state chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, alleged that some of the party members have been arbitrarily blacklisted for a series of violent attacks by the state government.
Lawal alleged that Governor Adeleke and his party have planned to harass, kidnap, and kill leaders and members of the APC to silence the voice of the opposition.
According to him, the Task Force, secretly set up by Governor Adeleke and peopled by the PDP thugs and notorious criminals on the wanted list of the police have been billed to forcefully retrieve some vehicles duly approved for past government functionaries.
“Our profound insistence that Governor Adeleke should disclose the identities of the contractors handling major projects in the state has continued to enrage the government and necessitated the plot to clamp down on our members, especially those who served in the government of former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola and members of our media team.
“On the threat to lives and properties of the leaders and members of the All Progressives Congress, security reports available to us revealed that the handlers of the state government will, anytime from now, carry out the evil plan by hiding under the excuse of implementing the White Paper recently issued by the Osun State Government,” Lawal said.
The APC also condemned the continuous closure of the courts and deliberate suspension of some traditional rulers like Aree of Iree, Owa of Igbajo, and Akinrun of Ikirun while Alawo of Awo was spared because he conferred chieftaincy titles on the governor’s sister, Dupe Adeleke-Sanni and her husband.
“However, while the governor cleared the Alawo of Awo to function as Oba pending the determination of the lawsuit in respect of the stool, he nullified the processes that produced the Aree of Iree and Owa of Igbajo and ordered fresh processes. He declared the Akinrun of Ikirun stool vacant pending the outcome of the court case,” Lawal said.
Reacting, the Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP, Bamiji Oladele, said the APC was crying wolf where there was none.
He said: “What the present administration did was to investigate the missing government vehicles and it was discovered that the vehicles were carted away by officials of the previous administration illegally, hence, a task force to recover the missing vehicles is put in place. We are not after anybody or attempting to silence opposition but to recover what they stole,” Olabamiji said.