Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke
Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has condemned the arrest of the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Hon. Sunday Bisi, describing the development as a politically motivated attempt to intimidate opposition supporters during the ongoing governorship election.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the governor alleged that Bisi was arrested at his residence in Ilesa shortly after casting his vote.
According to the statement, security operatives reportedly took the PDP chairman to an undisclosed location without disclosing the reason for his arrest.
“Information reaching me indicates that Hon. Bisi was accosted in his home in Ilesa shortly after he returned after voting, and whisked him away to yet to be known location.
“Up till this moment, no one has been availed the reason for his arrest, which indicates that the APC is working in cohort with compromised security agents to keep people away from monitoring results at the various collation centres,” the statement read.
Governor Adeleke further alleged that the arrest formed part of a broader plan to influence the outcome of the election at the collation stage.
“This latest sweep on my supporters, I have authoritatively learnt, is part of a broader plan to give the APC unhindered access to change results at collation centres and upturn our wins at the poll. This is the biggest assault on democracy, and I urge everyone involved in this desperate attempt to upturn the will of our people through the use of state institutions.”
The governor called for the immediate release of the PDP chairman and other individuals he described as political detainees across the state.
“In that regard, I am calling for the immediate release of Hon. Bisi because his arrest is nothing but political and other political prisoners across Osun state. Election should be about the people freely giving their mandates to the person of their choice without threat or force.”
As of the time of filing this report, the Nigeria Police Force had not issued an official statement on the arrest, while the All Progressives Congress (APC) had yet to respond to the allegations contained in the governor’s statement.
