No fewer than two members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were reportedly killed, while several others sustained gunshot injuries after suspected gunmen attacked a political mobilisation meeting in the Owode-Igbona area of Osogbo, Osun State, on Wednesday night.
The attack, which occurred less than 24 hours before the official flag-off of the APC governorship campaign in Ile-Ife, has heightened concerns over security ahead of the August 15 governorship election in the state.
Eyewitnesses said party members had gathered for a mobilisation meeting in support of the APC governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji (AMBO), when armed men, reportedly dressed in black police-like uniforms, stormed the venue in a white bus and another vehicle.
According to witnesses, the assailants allegedly attempted to abduct an APC youth leader, Mr. Ogundele Awosola, popularly known as Ogunteru. However, he reportedly resisted and escaped, after which the attackers allegedly opened fire indiscriminately on those at the meeting.
Narrating his ordeal, Awosola alleged that he was specifically targeted because he and several others recently defected from the Accord Party to the APC.
“We were holding a meeting when the vehicles arrived. We initially thought they were policemen. One of them pointed a gun at me and ordered me to follow him. I refused and managed to escape. Moments later, they started shooting indiscriminately. I alerted the police, and when they arrived, several of our members had already been shot,” he said.
He further alleged that a Beretta pistol was recovered at the scene by the police and claimed that some of the suspected attackers had been monitoring their activities since their defection to the APC.
The deceased were identified by party members as Kazeem Akande, aged 70, and another member identified simply as Lekan.
Among those reportedly injured were Kehinde Salaudeen, Olalekan Mutiu and a 13-year-old girl, Rodiyat Ariyo, who were receiving treatment at the time of filing this report.
A former Accord Party local government chairman who recently joined the APC, Hon. Akinloye Isiaka, said he narrowly escaped the attack after leaving the meeting shortly before the gunmen struck.
“I had just left the venue when I received a call that gunmen had attacked the meeting. I demand justice for those who lost their lives,” he said.
Several APC leaders who visited the victims at the hospital condemned the attack and called on security agencies to conduct a thorough investigation.
Former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Adebayo Adeleke, described the attack as premeditated and urged the Inspector-General of Police to ensure that those responsible are apprehended and prosecuted.
Similarly, former Commissioner for Works, Engr. Oluremi Omowaiye, confirmed that the bodies of the deceased had been deposited at the morgue and appealed to security agencies to bring the perpetrators to justice.
He alleged that preliminary medical findings on some of the injured indicated that high-calibre weapons may have been used during the attack.
In a related development, suspected hoodlums reportedly unleashed violence in the Idiseke area of Osogbo in the early hours of Thursday, where no fewer than 10 vehicles were vandalised and at least four persons reportedly sustained injuries.
Meanwhile, the Osun State Police Command confirmed both incidents and said investigations had commenced.
The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, disclosed that two suspects had been arrested in connection with one of the attacks, while arms and ammunition were recovered at another crime scene.
“Regarding the incident at Egbatedo, one person was killed, several others sustained injuries and two suspects have been arrested. Some persons mentioned by witnesses are already on the police watch list, and investigations are ongoing,” he said.
“On the Owode-Igbona incident, no arrest has been made yet, but arms and ammunition were recovered at the scene. At this stage, we cannot confirm the casualty figure, although several persons sustained injuries. Investigation is ongoing.”
The latest violence has raised fresh concerns over political tension and public safety as campaigns intensify ahead of the August 15 governorship election in Osun State.
