By Editor
Lucky Aiyedatiwa, governor of Ondo, has denied allegations that he ordered thugs to attack the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akure, the state capital.
On Tuesday, suspected hoodlums attacked Ade Adetimehin, the caretaker chairman of the APC in Ondo, and some party leaders during a stakeholders’ meeting at the party’s secretariat.
Adetimehin was beaten to a pulp, with his phone confiscated. Stakeholders were forced to abandon the crucial meeting convened ahead of ward congresses.
The attack threw the party secretariat into chaos, as the assailants wielded sticks, machetes, and other weapons, forcing members to scamper for safety.
After the incident, Adetimehin accused members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), allegedly led by Ademola Odudu, the chairman, of carrying out the attack on Aiyedatiwa’s orders.
‘I WAS AT A BIRTHDAY CEREMONY’
On Tuesday night, Aiyedatiwa led party leaders to the secretariat for a stakeholders’ meeting with members of the congress committees from the APC national secretariat.
Speaking about the incident, the Ondo governor said he received a call from the party chairman on Tuesday morning about the stakeholders’ meeting.
Aiyedatiwa said he told the party chairman to reschedule the meeting for 2pm on Tuesday to allow him and other stakeholders to attend the meeting because of a birthday ceremony of one of the stakeholders.
The governor denied any role in the violence, saying the disturbance was caused by rival groups loyal to different aspirants.
Aiyedatiwa said most of the stakeholders, including himself, were at the birthday event during the attack.
“At about 11am, I got a call from the party chairman that there was going to be a stakeholders’ meeting, which I approved,” the governor said.
“But I told them it should be fixed for 2 p.m. because I was attending the 50th birthday of one of our stakeholders who is a cabinet member.
“Normally, we have stakeholders’ meetings and I am always in attendance, together with the speaker and the deputy governor.
“But this one was an impromptu meeting because of the ward and local government congresses.
“You can see the way I am dressed. I was at the birthday of one of the stakeholders who was also supposed to be here. That was why we asked them to shift the meeting to 2pm.”
