- Safiu Kehinde
Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the state governor, Ademola Adeleke, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of arming the Southwest vigilante group, Amotekun, to oppress, suppress, and victimise its members across the state.
The Osun APC State Chairman, Sooko Tajudeen Lawal, made the allegation during a press conference held on Wednesday at the party’s campaign office in Osogbo.
Sooko, in his address, accused the Amotekun Corps of compromise, alleging that several innocent citizens, majorly supporters of the APC, arae currently held in an underground cell located at the security outfit’s headquarters at Power-line Area, Ikirun Road, Osogbo.
He also disclosed the presence of similar cell at Bolorunduro Local Government Council Area (LCDA) where several members of the opposition party are allegedly brutalised with their family members unaware of their whereabouts.
“Family members of some of the detainees are not aware of the ordeals of their loved ones in the hands of the Osun Amotekun Corps.
“We have equally been informed that the Amotekun Corps office in Bolorunduro Local Government Council Area of the state operates a disturbing cell where innocent Nigerians and members of the opposition party are brutalized and daily tortured.” He said.
The Osun APC Chairman further accused the Adeleke-led administration of recruiting political thugs, cultists and dismissed Police officers into the security outfit with alleged aim of unleashing political terrorism against opposition.
“A peep into the recent recruitment into the supposed internal security outfit which ideally should be complementing the activities of the statutory security services authoritatively confirmed the fear and suspicion of the people that it has become a safe haven for daredevil cultists and some of the PDP thugs who have been on the wanted-list of the police on the account of their past criminal activities.
“It was gathered that the Governor Adeleke-led administration is using a decoy to arm the party’s political thugs with a directive to unleash terror on the members of the opposition and their supporters.
“Information has it that the leadership of the PDP in the state specifically sent words to the leaderships of the ruling party in all the local government council areas to forward the names of the hardened political thugs in their constituencies with a view to recruiting them for political terrorism against the opposition.” He continued.
Coupled with the shady recruitment, Tajudeen also accused the Corps Commander of Amotekun in the state, Adekunle Omoyele, of using the operatives in usurping police constitutional roles and causing economic sabotage through interception, arrest and extortion of trailers, illegal dabbling into marital issues, rivaling and ridiculing the police and other security agencies amongst others.
He further recounted how the Amotekun Corps embarked on massive arrest and detention of over ten traditional chiefs at Itaapa town.
The chiefs, according to him, are still in custody where they were detained over alleged organisation of local security for the community.
“Osun Amotekun Corps commenced massive arrest and detention of traditional chiefs, believed to be members of the opposition APC at Itaapa, in the Atakumosa-East Local Government Council Area of Osun State. No fewer than ten prominent traditional chiefs, from the town, Itaapa, are currently in Amotekun custody in Osogbo, the state capital, over trumped up allegations.
“Multiple credible sources from the community hinted that Chief Adeyeri Olalekan, Chief Adeyeri Ladele, Chief Adeyeri Adeyeye, Chief Ariyo Dare and Chief Ogunsola Oladele are being detained in Amotekun detention facility in Osun over the allegation of unlawfully organising local security for the community.” Tajudeen said.
The APC Chairman held that the Amotekun Corps members now criminalise community leaders because of politics, adding that efforts of one of the chieftains of the APC to secure the bail of the chiefs were unsuccessful.
Tajudeen called for the intervention of the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, over the alleged assaults by the Amotekun Corps
“We are appealing to the Inspector-General of Police and the National Security Adviser (NSA) to urgently come to the aid of the oppressed inhabitants of Osun State who are being traumatised by the illegal activities of the Osun State Security Network Agency and Amotekun Corps.
“Osun Amotekun is a controversial security outfit which should be outrightly disbanded or totally overhauled as the current crop of its leadership and membership are verifiable misfits.” He added.