Thugs take over venue of Southwest PDP Congresss - State Chairmen

 

Ahead of the rescheduled Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-West zonal congress in Osogbo, Osun State, on Monday, four state chairmen of the party have raised the alarm that the Oyo State governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde, should be blamed if the congress failed to hold.

They alleged that “over 100 buses and more than 1,000 hoodlums from Ibadan have taken over the congress venue,” on the instruction of Governor Makinde.

They also alleged that the hatchet job of stuffing the ballot boxes with the illegally released ballot papers was to be supervised and achieved by a certain Senator Samuel Anyanwu, from Imo State, who was nominated as Secretary of the Congress Committee by Governor Makinde’s group.

The chairman of Ogun State chapter of PDP, Dr Sikirulai Ogundele, who spoke on behalf of the PDP chairmen of Ekiti,  Lagos and Osun States, Otunba Bisi Kolawole, Engr Adedeji Doherty and Hon. Sunday Bisi respectively, said hotels where delegates are lodged are also being invaded by the thugs.

The PDP chairmen said it was shameful that a state governor will invade another State with that large number of thugs just because of a zonal congress.

The statement reads: “Over 100 buses with Arapaja’s poster, loaded with thugs and ammunitions from Ibadan have taken over WOCDIF Hall, venue of tomorrow’s (Monday) congress.

“As we write, former chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Oyo State, Alhaji Mukaila Lamidi, popularly known as ‘Auxilliary’ and his boys, who are armed with dangerous weapons, have blocked WOCDIF Hall.


“Also, Policemen brought from Ibadan by Governor Makinde are going from one hotel to another, to abduct delegates.

“It is obvious that either Governor Makinde does not want the congress to hold because of his imminent defeat or he wants only his remnants of delegates from Oyo State to be the only ones who will have access to the hall tomorrow.

“We are therefore alerting our party’s National Working Committee to the shenanigans going on in Osogbo courtesy of Governor Makinde and we wish to state that the venue be changed with immediate effect,” he added.