THE Osun West Senatorial Candidate under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Aminu Tadese has alleged that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Senatorial candidate for Osun West, Lere Oyewumi for leading some PDP thugs to attack him on Tuesday evening.
Addressing a Press Conference on Wednesday at the Tinubu/Shettima Campaign Office, Ogo-Oluwa, Osogbo, the Spokesperson of the Campaign Council in Osun, Engr. Remi Omowaye raised serious concerns over the rising cases of political attacks and assassination attempts being masterminded by the PDP hoodlums since the inception of the present administration in the State.
“Just yesterday (Tuesday), our Senatorial Candidate for Osun West, Dr. Amidu Tadese was attacked. Our candidates could not even campaign again and they kept asking: is this not Osun that we all know, where there was peace? We are peace loving party and we are calling on President Muhammadu Buhari and heads of security agencies to come to our aid.
“There is no doubt that PDP is a party of destruction. As you can see, since Oyetola stepped aside temporarily, the crisis of kidnap has been on the increase. Osun used to be the most peaceful state in Nigeria, but today, the reverse is the case. We don’t need further evidence, just yesterday (Tuesday) people were kidnapped in a broad daylight in Osogbo.
“So, we are using this medium to draw the attention of the entire world to what is happening in Osun. We are calling on President Muhammadu Buhari, Inspector General of Police, Director of Department of State Services, and heads of other security agencies to come to our rescue in Osun. What happened in July 16 governorship election was a clear case of manipulation and that is why they are trying to intimidate us and other citizens,” Omowaye said.
Intimating the media to the assassination attempt on his person on Tuesday, the APC Senatorial Candidate for Osun West, Dr. Amidu Tadese alleged that the PDP candidate for Osun West Senatorial District, Lere Oyewumi coordinated the attack on him.
According to him, his opponent, Oyewumi, led the fully armed political hoodlums on rampage aimed at assassinating him and attack his supporters who had already assembled for the rally in Ikire on Tuesday.
He confirmed that the incident occurred around 5:30pm when the hoodlums started throwing bottles and hurling stones at his supporters and shooting sporadically to disperse them at the venue of the Ward rally.
He narrated that the hoodlums who were more than 30 in number ransacked the entire community, vandalised his vehicles and looted personal belongings of the residents in the areas.
“We started our campaign on Monday at Wasinmi in Ward 10, Irewole Local Government Area after which we moved to Ward 11 and later Ward 9. It was when we got to Ward 9 yesterday after our supporters had already assembled that the PDP thugs led by its Senatorial Candidate came to attack us.
“They were more than 30 in number, they starting hurling stones and bottles at us and later shooting from a filling station in Naira and Kobo area. The filling Station is owned by Lere Oyewumi. They attacked our members and destroyed properties including our vehicles and commercial mini-buses and tricycles passing by at that material time.
“A lot of properties were destroyed. I saw Oyewumi himself leading the hoodlums. When they destabilized the whole thing and people scampered for safety, they retreated to Oyewumi’s filling station. I managed to escape the assassination attempt because I knew I was their target. They were shouting ‘where is he’, but I thank God that I manoeuvred my way to escape.
“Though, we had the police permit to hold the meeting and I see no reason such could have happened. But we thank God for His protection and safety. After i managed to leave the venue, I saw Lere Oyewumi and his thugs at the front of his filling station and they started chasing me, they chased me to Gbongan junction, but God saved my life”, he added.
The Press Conference had in attendance, the Spokesperson for the immediate past Governor, Ismail Omipidan; former Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode; APC Spokesman, Kola Olabisi; Former Special Adviser to the immediate past Governor on Education, Jamiu Olawumi, among others.
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