At least three people were killed and 10 houses destroyed by
armed youths who invaded Born Photo, Isale Osi, Idi Arere and Popoyemoja
in Ibadan South-West Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The youth who operated freely for about two hours before
policemen arrived at the scenes, also burnt or vandalised about 200 shops,
several vehicles and a tricycle.
Eyewitnesses said the thugs partly burnt a petrol
station at Popoyemoja junction.
Our correspondent gathered that the mayhem started at 9am at
Born Photo before it spread to Isale Osi, Idi Arere and Popoyemoja.
Residents linked the violence to last Friday’s attack in
which a policeman was shot dead at a rally by the All Progressives
Congress.
One of them said, “Youths hired by politicians
released several shots at Born Photo junction. This is a fall-out
of Friday’s violence at the APC rally. This may not be over soon
because there could be reprisal. Government must intervene quickly.”
Mr. Okunola Asimiyu, whose family house on SW9/263 was burnt
on Sunday, wondered why his house was a target.
He said, “I am not a politician. My father built this house
many decades ago. The fight in Oke-Ado three days ago may have led
to today’s (Sunday) attack on our community. I have no friends
among the politicians. I was in the building when the thugs set it on fire . I
tried to put off the fire but when I realised that it was
spreading, I had to escape.”
About five shops in the house were vandalised.
Folake Oladipo, who operated one of the shops, said she lost
over N1m.
She added, “I received a call this(Sunday) morning that my
shop was burning. I rushed there but I saw people with guns shooting and
burning houses. They burnt my refrigerators, generators and looted everything
in the shop. I am devastated.”
Also destroyed in the building was a football viewing
centre. Its operator, Adepoju Owolabi, said football fans were lucky to have
escaped.
At Popoyemoja junction, a BP petrol station was vandalised
and partly burnt. Policemen at the scene said calamity would have happened if
the fire had reached the fuel dump.
However, the Caretaker Chairman of Ibadan South-West Council
Area, Taoreed Adeleke, blamed the opposition for the attack.
Adeleke said, “Clearly, this is the work of the opposition.
They want to scare people during elections and place the blame on the
government of the day. We appeal that people should return to their homes.
People are not ready to talk; they are scared of mentioning the perpetrators
for fear of being attacked.
“I will also blame hoodlums or area boys that are bent on
disrupting the peaceful atmosphere in the state for the attack. We heard that
the people would come up before the election to make the state ungovernable.
“It started on Friday in Oke Ado and its spreading now. I
was called early this (Sunday) morning that the problem had started again so I
mobilised security men to stop them.”
However, an Accord Party chieftain, Lanre Ogundipe, said the
fight was between APC members.
“APC started it among rival groups within the party on
Friday. They should not point accusing fingers at any other political party,”
he said.
The APC Chairman in the state, Akin Oke, in a statement
after the violence, called on the police to investigate the attack thoroughly.
Like Adeleke, Oke blamed the mayhem on the opposition.
His statement read in part, “All evidences at APC disposal
pointed at a high-level gang-up by some politicians currently at large to
embarrass government and to destroy the three and half years of peace in the
state.
“We still insist that the persons behind that violence were
carrying out a high-level assignment which has to do with the 2015 elections.
The violence betrays logic. Why would APC ‘thugs’, if the allegation of the
opposition is to be believed, be involved in shooting the police and not their
rival groups? Why did the fomenters of the violence choose the governor’s local
government and the last day of his meet-the-people tour, as their target?”
The Police Public Relations Officer, Oyo State Police
Command, Olabisi Ilobanefor, said the police had yet to make any arrest.
He said the state Commissioner of Police, Kola Sodipo, would
address the media over the spate of attacks in the state on Monday (today).
– Source
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