Ondo state Commissioner for Works, Saka Ogunleye has been allegedly attacked by some angry youth alongside other people at Iju community in Akure North local government area of Ondo state on Thursday.
Reports says, Ogunleye was in the community to attend a meeting on the membership registration and validation of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
It was also learnt that some minutes after the arrival of Ogunleye, the irate youths besieged Iju town hall venue of the meeting,with harmful objects and descended on the commissioner as many members were reportedly injured.
A source said “As you know, we are starting the registration of our members in few days time. So, the APC chairman in Akure North called a meeting and invited other leaders of the party to discuss the issue.
“The meeting had not even started when some thugs invaded the venue of the meeting. They started raining abuses and curses on commissioner Ogunleye. They nearly killed him.
“This is a sad development. We don’t know what could have caused it. What’s the big deal in membership registration? I am sorry for the party. ”
The source accused Tayo Alasoadura, Minister of State for Niger-Delta Affairs, of masterminding the attack on Ogunleye.
He said: “Those who attacked the commissioner are known boys of Chief Alasoadura. We thought Alasoadura has gone beyond that, considering his age and where God has put him.
“The incident has been reported to Baba Farukanmi so that he will help us tell the governor that oga has started again.”
Efforts by our correspondent to get the reactions of Alasoadura were not successful as messages sent his phone and WhatsApp were not replied while he could not be reached through phone calls
In his reactions, Alasoadura's media aide Dayo Joe while speaking on behalf of the Minister, said his boss was too big to be involved in such a thing as sponsoring an attack on the commissioner.
Dayo described the meeting as factional, saying it was not an APC meeting.
He said: “I just believe those who did it saw it as a factional meeting. It was not an APC meeting. They only camouflaged under the umbrella of APC. This is because some other leaders whom they believe are not loyal to them were not invited to that meeting.
“So, it was a factional meeting and, as a result, some people were not happy. That was what happened yesterday. Alasoadura was not even aware. He was not even around. So, he wouldn’t have been the mastermind of the attack.
“And Alasoadura is too big to be attacking Saka. So, these people are only trying to make a mountain out of a molehill. That’s just it. It was not the making of Alasoadura at all.
“It is because of what they are doing that people do not like. That is what I perceived resulted to the attack. A lot of leaders were not invited to that meeting.”
But some leaders of the party in Akure North insisted that the minister was the one behind the disruption of the meeting.
Eleti said he invited everyone who deserved to be at the meeting.
While narrating the incident to Senator Nimbe Farukanmi, Chairman of APC Elders Council in the state, Eleti said: “We had sat when these youths came in and drove all of us out. They threatened brimstone and fire. But we left the scene for peace to reign.
“We have come to you as younger ones, who obeyed instruction from our party headquarters to prepare for membership registration. Sir, help us inform Mr. Governor that a leader of the party from Iju is out to cause crisis, which we do not need.”
Akin Adeniyi, former member of the State House of Assembly, traced the sponsorship of the attack to he person he described as a top indigene of Iju town.
“This leader is the clog in the wheel of progress in the party in this local government. He operates divide and rule tactics. The youths he sent to disrupt our meeting today were after a political office holder for no reason.
“They said it to the hearing of all. The DPO and his team witnessed the mayhem. This is our town in Ondo State. We will not succumb to intimidation from any quarter.
Sir, as our baba in politics, use your influence to talk to those fanning the embers of division to stop it,” Adeniyi said.
Kenneth Olawale, former speaker of the State House of Assembly, stated that invitation to the meeting was extended to all party leaders, ward executive members and political appointees in Akure North.
Olawale said the purpose of the meeting was to deliberate on how to mobilise members towards the coming membership registration and validation exercise.
He said: “All of us had converged in the hall. Suddenly, some youths stormed the hall shouting, overturning tables, pushing people, brandishing dangerous weapons and saying the meeting must not hold.
“They chased everyone out of the meeting. In the presence of security agents, they were threatening to deal with an office holder from the local government.
“After leaving the Hall, they still threw stones at us. In the process, a number of the women, who scampered for safety suffered injuries. This should not happen in Iju again. Please sir, it is time to forge ahead and work towards making our local government and state become more peaceful.”
Farukanmi, however, cautioned the APC members in the local government area against acting in a way that would cause disunity in the party.
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