By Sodiq Adelakun
The immediate-past Commissioner for Works and Transport in Osun State, Oluremi Omowaiye, was on Friday attacked in Ilesa, his home town in Osun State, by yet-to-be-identified hoodlums.
According to a Facebook post shared by Omowaiye’s personal assistant, Yakub Atanda, who was equally caught up in the melee, the former Commissioner had visited a popular spare parts market in Isida to celebrate yuletide with the traders.
“Everything was going smoothly,” said Atanda, adding “before some hoodlums surfaced from nowhere to hurl bottles, stones and other dangerous objects at our entourage. They shot sporadically at us.”
While Omowaiye escaped without any injury, many members of his entourage and mobilisers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ilesa present at the event, were not that lucky as they were seriously injured by the attackers.
The APC Youth Leader in Ilesa West Ward 3, Opeyemi One, Tosin Adanlawo, Ojo Agboola and Junior Olaojaoke were some of the members of Omowaiye’s entourage attacked and were receiving treatment for various degrees of injuries.
Speaking to journalists after the incident, Omowaiye said, “I have many reasons to believe those unhappy I am still around in the state to galvanise support for our party are the characters behind the assassination attempt on my person.
“They have been on my trail for months. They reason that when I and other leaders of the party are taken out or sent out of the state, our rank will fall apart and they would have an edge in the next year’s elections.
“We are resolute: we won’t leave the state for them. We will continue to mobilise for our party so we can truimph at the poll. Asiwaju Tinubu is the next president of Nigeria, by God’s grace and our principal shall get back the mandate freely given to him by our people. Our hope is on God and the good people of Osun State who we served meritoriously and would want our party back in government in the state.”
Confirming the attack, Osun Police Public Relations Officer, Yemisi Opalola, said the State Police commissioner, Kehinde Longe, has visited Ilesa, adding that arrest has been made.
She said the parties and suspects arrested involved have been brought to the State headquarters in Osogbo for thorough investigation into the attack.
Meanwhile, the Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the attack on Omowaiye.
In a statement made available by its Director of media, Kola Olabisi, in Osogbo, the state capital, APC bemoaned the attack on Omowaiye and his supporters, adding that it was unacceptable, barbaric, cruel and condemnable.
APC asked the state commissioner of police and other security agencies in the state to rise up to their responsibility of ensuring the safety of lives and property of the people irrespective of their political leanings.