The murdered Aderiye was said to be a staunch supporter of the governor-elect, Ayo Fayose and also alleged to have led the hoodlums that attacked judges, lawyers and other judicial workers during proceedings at the State High Court on Monday and Thursday. Aderiye was murdered by unkown gunmen late Thrusday night at his office in Ejigbo area of Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.
The angry mob vented their anger on the offices of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ajilosun area of the state capital. The buildings, which serve as the party’s secretariat, were burnt along with properties of major members of the APC.Continue...
Several vehicles and motorcycles were also burnt by the hoodlums, while vehicles parked by the road in such places as Oke Iyinmi, Odo-Ado, Oke-Ila and Oke-Isa, among others, were destroyed.
The action of the irate mob led to a breakdown of law and order until about 9:30 am when security operatives eventually arrested the situation. The anti-riot security operatives tear-gassed the scenes of the protest and dispersed the mob. Many people were nabbed in the course of arresting the chaos.
The state governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi has consequently imposed a 7pm to 7am curfew in the state capital. Announcing the curfew in a state-wide broadcast yesterday, Governor Fayemi said there would be restriction in movement between 7pm and 7am everyday till further notice.
The governor, who has also suspended his Thank-You tour of the state, urged the citizenry to be vigilant and provide security agencies with details of suspicious activities that can undermine the peace of the state.
While calling on all stakeholders in the state to cooperate with government “to stop the violence and brigandage that had brought about serious embarrassment” to the state, Dr. Fayemi charged all and sundry to temper their “competitive zeal with civility and empathy.”
“On Monday, September 22, thugs acting on the incitement of an interested party, were involved in the sacrilegious sacking of the court while hearing on a political case was in progress. This happened in full glare of the law enforcement agents with inappropriate response. Clearly, these brigands exceeded the limits of acceptable behaviour, even in the most liberal of democracies, and ventured into the realm of blatant criminality with this desecration of the hallowed chambers of the law.
“The fact that this assault did not meet with any strong deterring repercussions from the appropriate authorities further emboldened the miscreants. They subsequently attempted to prevent the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal from sitting, yesterday, Thursday, September 25. I am advised incontrovertibly that thugs acting on the command of Mr. Ayo Fayose, who was also present to lend his clout to the travesty, brazenly assaulted a senior judge and urged his thugs to beat him up and tear his clothes”, the governor added.
Governor-elect Ayo Fayose, who visited the home of murdered Aderiye in Olokemeji area of Ado Ekiti yesterday, to commiserate with the family, said the deceased was his close and staunch supporter. His words: “It is barbaric and happening at this point in time, it is a political killing. And I will rest it with the police to do a proper investigation, the murdered Aderiye was my very strong supporter. We were together till about 5pm yesterday (Thursday). But taking his life is not an option. It is not the best. This is irreparable and we have come here to condole with the family. If this other party is sure they are not the one who is responsible for the killing, they should be courageous enough to come and pay a condolence visit to his family.”
Reacting to the chaos caused by the mob in the streets of Ado Ekiti, Fayose said: “What happened in the town is a clear reaction of the people to the steps being taken by the out-going government to simply cause chaos in the state before their exit.”
Also reacting to Fayemi’s statement in which he tactically blamed him (Fayose) for inciting the mob action against the court officials, Fayose said: “He (Fayemi) is a defeated man, so I don’t expect anything better from him. I see him as governor until his time is over. So, I would not join issues with him. It is reckless for anybody to be making assertions on an incident you didn’t witness. I will want to accord the office due respect and not join issues with him. He has only said he has advised the Chief Judge, that is only a piece of advice and there is nothing wrong with it. I have been going round town to calm frayed nerves. If we have not been calming the people since last night, you wouldn’t have seen the peace we have now. Their target is to make sure that the inauguration doesn’t take place but my desire is to ensure there is peace and that is why I have been working hard to calm the people. Having failed in the back door of twisting justice through the court, they have now resorted to self-help. But I’m assuring you that by the grace of God, because God abhors people who shed blood, the blood of Aderiye will fight his killers.”
Also condeming the killing of late Aderiye, the Ekiti PDP in a statement by its secretary, Pastor Kola Oluwawole, said the killing is an act of wickedness, describing it as barbaric and satanic plot which cannot be separated from the clandestine activities of the APC.
The party said: “We’ve raised an alarm on the clandestine move by Fayemi and his men to attack the Governor-elect, Dr Ayo Fayose and some notable leaders in all the 16 local government areas as from the 22nd September, 2014 while the killing of Aderiye who is one of the notable leaders of the party in Ado Ekiti occurred on the 25th of the same month, this has vindicated our earlier claims.”
Oluwawole, who said that the late Omolafe Aderiye was at the Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Ado Ekiti on the June 21 governorship election, when he mobilised all drivers’ union members and other associations in solidarity with the governor-elect, saying that as a result of his commitment to the mandate given to the Fayose, he became a prime target of attack.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, ASP Victor Babayemi who confirmed the carnage caused by the mob, said some arrests have been made. His words:” a number of suspects have been arrested and taken into custody for investigation in relation to the mayhem. The command is also on the trail of the gunmen who shot and killed the former NURTW boss. The residents of the state are, therefore, advised to remain calm and be law abiding. We equally enjoin the people to comply with the dust-to-dawn curfew order made by His Excellency, the Governor of Ekiti State. Any person or group of persons found flouting the order or breaking the law will be adequately dealt with in accordance with the law.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Nonsoloaded's Offer: Comment and Win 1000 worth Airtime Recharge weekly. At the end of every week the reader with highest comment will be rewarded. Terms & Conditions apply