Members of The Osun Progressives, TOP, a group with the All Progressives Congress loyal to the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has stated that they still have confidence in the members of the Ward Congress Appeal Committee headed by Ambassador Obed Wadzani, untill they are proven otherwise.
The group stated this on Sunday at a press conference addressed by Caretaker secretary of the Osun APC, Alhaji Rasaq Salinsile in Osogbo.
Salinsile accused members of the IleriOluwa group, the loyalists of Governor Gboyega Oyetola of attacking TOP members at the party secretariat, stating that his colleagues at TOP were only there to submit and defend their petitions against the Congress held last month.
InsightMedia reported that there was a free for all attack at the party secretariat of the APC located at Ogo-Oluwa area of Osogbo on Saturday as two groups within the party were fighting leaving one person injured during the fisticuffs. Security operatives had to whisk away members of the committee from the premises.
During the conference held at Oranmiyan house, the group described as rumour the report that the committee had completed its assignments, stating that more petitions are yet to be adopted. They, however, expressed zero doubt in the integrity of the committee members.
Salinsile said, “as party men and women, we still believe in the committee. We have no doubt about their integrity untill proven otherwise. We believe they will not want us to lose this State. Let me state here that the report on social media that the committee has concluded its assignments in Osun is a rumour. There still more petitions that the committee has not adopted.”
Speaking on the ugly event at the party secretariat on Saturday, Salinsile accused members of the IleriOluwa group, the loyalists of Governor Gboyega Oyetola, of attacking TOP members at the party secretariat. He stated that his colleagues at TOP were only there to submit and defend their petitions against the Congress held last month.
“The sheer number of members who were there was intimidating and would drive any rival mad. Hoodlums with Oyetola 4+4 face caps were drafted to the secretariat to dislodge the party members who had been calmly going before the Appeal Committee to present their cases. The resolute members resisted the invasion and walked the thugs out. The thugs yielded to awesome number and left in shame. The sitting was going on smoothly and everybody thought reason had prevailed and the worst was over. But then, there was this comic relief on the social media where a Commissioner in the Oyetola’s cabinet posted a scam of a material alleging the Chairman of TOP of bringing thugs to attack the committee members. The picture that the female commissioner put to illustrate her lies showed a person holding Governor Oyetola’s identity cap and you wonder how possible that the person carrying the Governor’s support cap is a member of the committee? On enquiry, the man was in protection of one of the senior thugs when he hits his head against the gate.
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“It is necessary to note that while the attack which was kicked off with gunshots by one of the hooded thugs was on, the security men could not do anything. While thugs had a field day shooting sporadically and inflicting injuries on the party members, the best the security was doing was to rescue the few they could get to. Obviously, the thugs outnumbered the security and this called to question the decision of the security heads to put scanty number of men in situation like this. We concede to the security chiefs the expertise to do what they considered the best in any situation but we note that the security could have been a bit tighter than it was when we have had cause to report attempted attacks and assassinations on the Osun Progressives leaders before now. We note peculiarly that once the security men were able to lead the committee members out of the Secretariat, every other party men was left to the mercy of the thugs.”
TOP called on the national leadership of the party to have extraordinary interest in the Osun case and find a way of redeeming the alleged injustice.
When contacted, spokesperson of the caretaker chairman, Kola Olabisi did not respond to enquiry made by our correspondent.
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