Many injured, several vehicles damaged, as Ogun APC factional congress turns bloody

The All Progressives Congress (APC) state Congress conducted  by the faction loyal to Senator Ibikunle Amosun was Saturday  invaded by thugs allegedly loyal to the governor’s camp.

The thugs who were armed with dangerous weapons stormed the venue of the Amosun’s factional Congress at Ake Palace in Abeokuta, shooting sporadically, while party members at the venue took to their heels for safety.

“They started shooting to scare us out of the venue of the congress with sporadic  gun shots, they also vandalised the windscreen of some vehicles parked at the entrance of the Palace”, an eyewitness said.

Another source confirmed that many of the party members were injured, while trying to run for their safety. 

He added that a woman, who had been rushed to the hospital,  had her cheek pierced by bullet.

The source however, lamented the action of men of Nigerian Police, who he claimed looked the other way, while the political  thugs were unleashing violence on party faithful.

This led to heated argument between the security  personnel  deployed to the venue of the Congress and some party loyalists who accused the police of acting the script of  the other group. 

The situation led to the delay of the Amosun faction of the State  Congress for about two and half hours.

While reacting to the violence, Hon. Gbenga  Opaleye, who claimed to be the Chairman appointed by the National secretariat of the party to monitor the Congress in Ogun state, condemned  the act of violence which he said was senseless.

“Ogun state is a peace-loving state, I dont know why we are sent to kill ourselves. You can not shoot the governor or the Senator. It is only the common man that is always at the receiving end of this violence. 

“We were sent here from the National secretariat, our own is to ensure that the state congress is conducted. We have been warned that if there was any crisis in any state we should leave it for the National secretariat,” he said.

At the end of the Congress of the Amosun faction, Chief Derin  Adebiyi emerged as the state chairman, while Chief Jide Ojuko and Mr Oluwatoyin Adebusuwa emerged  as the Deputy  Chairman  and Secretary of the group  respectively.