Barely one week to the House of Assembly election in Ondo State, some masked suspected thugs have reportedly attacked the campaign train of a Social Democratic Party, SDP candidate in the election, Mr Ebenezer Adeniyan.
Adeniyan, publisher of a popular Akure based news magazine, The Trace, and a former Secretary of the state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, seeks to represent the Akure South Constituency II in the State House of Assembly.
Together with hundreds of his supporters, they were reportedly attacked on Friday evening in Akure, the state capital, while the campaign train was visiting some wards.
An eyewitness said that the hoodlums damaged some vehicles in the convoy of the SDP candidate and also shot to disrupt the campaign.
The hoodlums were said to be armed with dangerous weapons, including guns and machetes.
He said, “The campaign train was on tour of two wards in the constituency area when the masked thugs attacked the train at the Oke Aro area. They shot into one of the branded cars through the windscreen.
“Immediately, they (thugs) fled the area and started shooting into the air to scare people away. They ran away in the same direction they came from but the courageous people in the area gave them a hot chase.”
Reacting to the incident, Adeniyan expressed worries at the damage done to his campaign vehicles by the hoodlums.
According to him, the latest attack on his campaign train was carried out by members of the opposition who were already being threatened by his rising popularity among the constituents.
He stated that the attack had been reported at the B Division of the Ondo State Police Command in Akure.
Adeniyan said: “I was shocked to say the least and there had been lots of attacks on my campaign for weeks since we started this electioneering process. Our banners were being stolen every day and posters torn everywhere into the Akure metropolis.
“However, I thank God that none of my team members was injured and I hope the police in Ondo State will investigate this attack and also get to the roots of the matter.”
The Police Public Relations Officer of the state, Mr Femi Joseph, confirmed the incident, saying investigation had commenced into it.
“The Commissioner of Police has ordered a full investigation into the incident and the perpetrators would be brought to book,” Joseph said.
