A caucus of the All Progressives Congress APC in the State of Osun, The Osun Progressives TOP has alerted members of the public, security agencies and President Muhammadu Buhari on plans allegedly hatched by Governor Adegboyega Oyetola led-IleriOluwa group to assassinate its notable members and leaders.
TOP Chairman, Adelowo Adebiyi in a statement on Monday said the plan, hatched over a week ago in Boripe Local Government is intended to neutralise the group and its activities as the last straw to break its camel’s back.
Adebiyi explained that security agencies in the state have also been partial in the ongoing crisis within Osun APC as it has been negligent of several reports written to it by TOP which clearly shows bias on their part.
TOP Chairman stated further that majority of the security agencies are working closely with the Governor’s men in their desire to annihilate it’s members whose vision is to reposition and reform the APC in Osun.
He called on the President to urgently intervene in the crisis stressing that further attacks on TOP leadership and its members is capable of plunging the state into a crisis that portends great danger for its security with the Governorship election 8 months away.
“You will all recall that TOP had in July this year raised the alarm that some government officials and APC chieftains were planning to assassinate and attack leaders of TOP in the state.
“Few weeks after the report, one of the leaders of TOP, Com. Biyi Odunlade, a former Commissioner for Youths, Sports and Special Needs, escaped assassination when assailants attacked his house in Ile-Ife on August 14. There were other attempts on the lives of some other TOP members who were attacked at their various meetings across the state.
“Information at our disposal now makes it clear that the level of desperation of Governor Oyetola led IleriOluwa group has reached the throats of its leaders and therefore concluded that elimination of TOP leaders will put a stop to our opposition to them.
“It is noteworthy to mention that some of the TOP leaders have been receiving strange calls which started at the weekend. The callers were threatening TOP leaders with assassination as the solution to TOP activities in the state.
“We learnt on inquiry that the Governor’s group IleriOluwa is jittery of what is likely going to be the outcome of the case instituted by members of the APC who belong to TOP caucus and would not mind if some leaders are killed in order to put a stop to TOP activities.
“We further gathered that the IleriOluwa group got incensed by the entry of Hon Lasun Yusuf’s into the governorship race and concluded that it was TOP activities that gave him the liver to be challenging the second term ambition of Governor Oyetola.”
Adebiyi stressed further that, “We were additionally told that an urgent meeting of the IleriOluwa top hierarchy was held somewhere in Boripe local government about a week ago where the decision to assassinate some leaders of TOP was finalised as the last joker to check our group’s contest for power with them.
“We note that TOP had made reports of assassination and attack plots on its leaders in the past to the security agents, but unfortunately, the reports have not been treated till date.
“It is on record that we had officially reported many attacks that were unleashed on many of our members, including direct shooting of two of them on October 16, at our parallel congress in Ogo-Oluwa area of Osogbo. Nothing is yet to be done on that report, too.
“It is with grave concerns that we note the levity with which majority of the security agencies have been handling reports of attacks on our members and we dare say it portends bias and negligence of duty on their part.
“We are forced to conclude that majority of the security agencies are working closely with Governor Oyetola’s group IleriOluwa in its determined desire to annihilate us simply because we embark on campaign for the repositioning of Osun APC.
“By the actions of the security agencies, it looks like they have given another meaning to their terms of existence as contained in the constitution of Nigeria; as they seem to work in the interests of only those in government as against the generality of the people of Nigeria,” The Osun Progressives continued.
