Things finally fell apart on Thursday in the Ogun State chapter of All Progressives Congress as armed thugs unleashed terror at the party secretariat in Abeokuta to stop a planned meeting of its Harmonization Committee.
The setting up of the harmonisation panel, which was expected to unite the contending forces in the party, had been a subtle battle between the camps of Governor Ibikunle Amosun and former governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba.
But the crisis assumed a new dimension on Thursday when suspected hoodlums descended on journalists and residents at the APC state secretariat located at Leme area of Abeokuta, smashing cameras, seizing mobile phones and beating.
In the ensuing melee, the thugs believed to be members of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), snatched the cameras belonging Messrs Kunle Ojo and Taofeek Lawal, correspondents of the Galaxy Television and MITV respectively.
The hoodlums also seized the blackberry phones of the correspondent of Paramount FM, Mrs. Modupe Sobukola, and malhandled another female correspondent of Nigerian Tribune, Mrs. Yinla Olukoya.
Some soldiers and riot policemen deployed to the party secretariat turned blind eye as they failed to rescue the embattled journalists from weapon-wielding thugs.
The hoodlums also injured some passers-by and vandalized several cars while traffic along the road in front of the APC secretariat were completely paralysed.
At the party secretariat, which was also vandalised, members of the State Harmonization Committee of APC, led by Senator Gbenga Kaka, and Osoba had roled out names of the panel.
The party chieftains were accompanied by Senators Gbenga Obadara and Akin Odunsi, former governorship candidate of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Wale Okunniyi, and other notable party stalwarts.
They later addressed news conference at the Iwe Irohin Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), where they said the inauguration of the harmonisation committee was in line with directive from the party’s national leadership.
Kaka said, ” Our great party APC leadership in their wisdom established the harmonisation committee in each of the 36 states and FCT. The composition and responsibilities of the committee were made public to the effect that, on inauguration it shall: elect the interim state executive of five members, to include, ;Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Organising Secretary and Public Relations Officer.
“The interim State Executive thereafter shall be responsible for Local governments, Wards and polling units structure formation.
“After the inaugural meeting of the Interim State exco the modalities for the structure formation at the Local govt, Wards and polling units shall be put in place for a smooth registration of our members. Loyal members of our great party are advised to stay calm in the face of provocation from any quaters, and totally reject any impositions in whatever guise.”
They ceded the nomination for the chairmanship of the harmonisation committee to Governor Amosun.
But reacting, the chairman of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Alhaji Tajudeen Bello, expressed concern over the situation in the APC and called on party members to support the governor in the task of building a united front.
He decried the invasion of the party secretariat by Osoba and some federal lawmakers, saying they had ulterior motives.
Bello said, “It was a great surprise that a new dimension is introduced into the politics of Ogun state. As a party what we were expecting is the issue of members registration.
“Unfortunately, we got the report from our staff that some hoodlums came to attack them for no just cause and in the process they attacked some of our staff I had to quickly phone the police to rescue the situation.
“We learnt that our revered leader Chief Olusegun Osoba also came with members of the National Assembly and addressed the press that he was spoiling for a fight. I will not believe that he said so, because he happened to be a builder of the party and they say what you build you don’t destroy. And as an elder statesman he should play a mediator’s role in case there is an issue.
“Governor Amosun needs encouragement, he has been performing well, he has been well received, what is the hues and cries about any issue that will distract the attention of the governor?”
Bello insisted that the harmonisation committee announced by Senator Kaka was null and void and of no effect.
“They said somebody read series of names; in a normal circumstance, is it the Secretary that should read the names of officers of the newly formed committee? It should have been Chairman and you did not see me,” he told reporters.
Meanwhile, the state NUJ yesterday blacklisted the activities of APC to protest the attack on some of its members by rampaging thugs at the party secretariat.
In a statement signed by its chairman, Comrade Wole Sokunbi, and secretary, Soji Amosu, the NUJ described the violence on its members as dastardly and resolved to blacklist all activities relating to APC and the NURTW.
The union, which said it had formally reported the matter to the police, threatened to take legal action if the items damaged and seized from the affected journalists were not returned within the next 24 hours.
