THE All Progressives Congress (APC) has said the violence that occurred at the party’s mega rally in ogun State was sponsored by Ibikunle Amosun, governor of the state.
Some aggrieved crowd attempted attacks on President Muhammadu Buhari who was there for his re-election quest and the party’s national chairman, Adams Oshiomole on Monday at the Ogun rally.
APC spokesman, Lannre Issa-Onilu, said in a statement on Tuesday that the party “will review this gross misconduct of deliberately positioning thugs to attack and embarrass the president and the party’s leadership”.
APC said any plan to destroy what the party stands for would be rejected. The spokesman said that party regretted “Monday’s premeditated attacks sponsored by Governor Ibikunle Amosun on President Muhammadu Buhari and other senior party leaders at the venue of the presidential campaign rally in Ogun state”.
He said it was an act of indiscipline which the party (APC) would not condone.
“The APC will not condone acts of indiscipline, indiscretion and anti-party activities from any party member no matter how highly placed,” Issa-Onilu said.
The statement read that APC would review the gross misconduct of deliberately positioning thugs to attack and embarrass the president and the party’s leadership.
“No single person will be allowed to put his personal and selfish interests ahead of the wishes of the people of Ogun state and elsewhere,” it read.
“Post primaries, the decision of the National Working Committee to uphold the wishes of party members is unbendable. Therefore, whatever means being presently deployed by persons intending to undermine the wishes of the people for personal gains will not be tolerated.”
The spokesman said party members should not be disturbed by Monday’s “condemnable incident.”
The APC in Ogun state is currently divided into two factions, one loyal to Governor Amosun and the other to the national leadership of the party, Adams Oshiomole. The APC leadership is supporting Dapo Abiodun who is the APC gubernatorial candidate in the state. But Amosun is against his party governorship candidate rather supporting Adekunle Akinlande of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) to be the next governor of the state.
Ibikunle Amosun had initially said the gathering was chiefly for President Buhari and not for the APC governorship candidate. But Oshiomole during his speech tried to campaign for Abiodun of APC, addressing him as the incoming governor of Ogun State. This led to some reactions from the crowd. And it made the rally ended in chaos.
A member of the Directorate of Media and Strategic Communication of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Team, Kayode Ogundamisi, who reacted to the situation on his twitter handle said Amosun wanted to endanger the lives of President Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbanjo.
“You endangered the lives of all who attended the event and particularly that of President Muhammadu Buhari and that of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo over what really?”