By Yetunde Ogunmola
Ahead of Ondo State gubernatorial election, aspirants under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have been trading blames on the recent destruction of campaign billboards at the Akure airport during the condolence visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the State over the death and burial of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.
It was alleged that the immediate past commissioner of finance, Wale Akinterinwa, and some other governorship aspirants were denied entry into the airport on the arrival of the President on Wednesday.
Starnews NG reported yesterday that President Tinubu landed at the Akure airport in Ondo state amid heavy security.
It was reliably gathered by our Correspondent that Wale Akinterinwa, Olusola Oke and Jimoh Ibrahim were not listed among the ten names given to security men by the state governor. But the trio were at the airport early enough to meet and welcome the president.
This may not be unconnected with the violent attacks against themselves by rival loyalists of the top leading APC aspirants. In the process, some campaign billboards were pulled down and destroyed, amid accusations and counter accusations by the rival campaign organizations.
Starnews NG reports that the Campaign Organsation of the former Commissioner for Finance, Akinterinwa, accused Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of using suspected political thugs to unleash terror during the visit of President Tinubu to Ondo State.
The spokesperson of Akinterinwa’s Campaign Organization, Segun Ajiboye, alleged that suspected thugs loyal to the governor unleashed violence on citizens, and destroyed billboards of their opponents.
“The thugs, fully loaded in unmarked vehicles, did not in any way hide their devilish intentions, as they went round major streets of Akure, destroying the bill boards of other gubernatorial aspirants of the All Progressives Congress”.
“They were fully armed with different weapons, shot sporadically into the air to create fears in the people. Expectedly, thousands of supporters of the APC who had prepared to receive the president ran helter-skelter to save their lives,” Ajiboye said in a terse statement.
Similarly, Olusola Oke Campaign Organization has also condemned the act of violence and bloody attack on its supporters and other APC members as they awaited the arrival of President Tinubu at the Akure airport yesterday.
Addressing members of the press, the campaign team expressed shock at the return of dark days of thuggery and politics of violence, urging security agencies to be on Red Alert against future occurrence.
However, in a swift reaction to the allegations of violence and thuggery against his Principal, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ebenezer Adeniyan said ” I am not aware of that, Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa has no thugs”.
Starnews NG reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has scheduled the Ondo governorship primaries for April, while the governorship election will be held on November 16, this year.
Meanwhile, Governor Aiyedatiwa last month, charged leaders of the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to ensure the forthcoming governorship primaries were free of rancour and peaceful.
He also urged all aspirants to be peaceful in their conduct ahead of the primaries and the governorship election.
Mr Aiyedatiwa gave the charge when he held a maiden interactive session with party stakeholders from the 18 local government areas of the State.
He called on contending forces within the party to end all hostilities and come together to move the party and the State forward.
Watch the Video that captured some thuggery activities below:
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