No fewer than two members of the All Progressives Congress were killed and six others injured after suspected gunmen attacked a mobilisation meeting of the party in Osogbo, Osun State.
The attack occurred on Wednesday night at Owode-Igbona, where supporters of the APC governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, had gathered ahead of the official commencement of the party's governorship campaign in Ile-Ife.
The deceased were identified as 70-year-old Kazeem Akande and another party member simply identified as Lekan, who reportedly died from gunshot wounds sustained during the attack.
Among those injured were the APC flag bearer in the area, Kehinde Salaudeen, 60, Olalekan Mutiu and a 13-year-old girl, Rodiyat Ariyo. The victims were said to be receiving medical attention.
Witnesses alleged that the attackers, dressed in black uniforms resembling those of security personnel, arrived in a white bus and another vehicle before attempting to seize an APC youth leader, Ogundele Awosola, popularly known as Ogunteru.
The gunmen reportedly opened fire on party members after Awosola resisted arrest and escaped from the scene.
A former Accord Party local government chairman who recently defected to the APC, Akinloye Isiaka, said he narrowly escaped the attack after leaving the meeting shortly before the assailants struck.
"I had just left the venue when the shooting started. Those behind this attack must be brought to justice because innocent people have lost their lives," he said.
He also urged the Inspector-General of Police to order a thorough investigation, warning that the security situation in Osun State was becoming increasingly worrisome.
Meanwhile, panic reportedly spread across the Idi Seke area of Osogbo in the early hours of Thursday after suspected political thugs allegedly vandalised several vehicles and commercial buses. A commercial bus conductor was also said to have sustained severe machete injuries during the incident.
0 Comments