The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has called on the police and other security agencies to investigate what it says are plans by the state government to trigger fresh political unrest across local government councils.
In a letter submitted to the Commissioner of Police, Umar Abba, and signed by the party’s Legal Adviser, Adegoke Ogunsola, the APC claimed that officials serving under Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration were making moves to incite violence.
The petition specifically mentioned the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman in the state, Mr. Sunday Bisi, as allegedly involved in the scheme to deploy thugs to attack APC-affiliated council officials.
According to the APC, this alleged plot mirrors similar incidents in February, where violence reportedly led to the loss of lives among its members. The party warned that failure to stop the current plan could lead to a repeat of that crisis.
The petition, made public in Osogbo on Monday, notes that “some functionaries serving with the Osun State Government and the Chairman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party… to recruit armed thugs that will be deployed to attack the Local Government Councils’ political functionaries in Osun State.”
The APC named four individuals it believes are involved in the alleged operation: Kolapo Alimi, Commissioner for Information; Hassim Abioye, Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC); Sunday Bisi, PDP Chairman; and Mallam Olawale Rasheed, Governor Adeleke’s spokesperson.
The party asked that the police, Department of State Services, and other agencies take urgent action to prevent any breakdown of law and order, especially at local council offices and among their supporters.
“We therefore call on you to use your good offices to deploy all security tactics and strategies to ensure the safety of the political functionaries and their property… and to forestall breach of public peace,” the petition reads.
In response, the Osun State chapter of the PDP dismissed the claims, accusing the APC of stirring the waters to create fear and tension.
Oladele Bamiji, Director of Media and Information for the PDP, rejected the allegations and said the opposition party was projecting its own faults onto the current administration.
“Perhaps they are afraid of their own shadow. They know that perhaps that is what they do when they were in government,” Bamiji said. “But Governor Adeleke has insisted that our people remain peaceful and wait for the legal outcome on the matter.”
He also said the APC was the one causing trouble through its connections at the federal level, and not the state government, which he said was committed to law and order.
