APC Raises Alarm Over Intimidation of Osun Residents Ahead Of Governorship Poll

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has raised an alarm and alleged that Federal Government (FG) has started terrorizing and intimidating residents of Osun State, ahead of next Saturday governorship election.

In a statement issued in Lagos today by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, APC wondered why the FG deployed to the state, agents of the Department of State Services (DSS), some of whom it alleged were masked and clad in black to harass citizens in “an unprovoked and primitive show of power”.

The party purported that DSS armed agents, have been sighted riding in over 50 trucks, around Osogbo, the state capital and other parts on Wednesday, blaring siren and shooting into the air.

APC revealed that information at its disposal indicated that over 5,000 DSS men were being dispatched to the state before the election, on the basis of an orchestrated petition with allegation that certain ruling party’s leaders were planning to foment trouble during the coming exercise.

”The real purpose of this fake petition and the consequent deployment of thousands of secret police to Osun is to harass, intimidate and arrest the leaders of the APC in the state, in a repeat of what transpired in Ekiti” APC indicted.

”What rankles even more is the constant assurances by President Jonathan that the election will be free and fair. How can we have a credible election in an atmosphere of state-led gangsterism? How can we have a credible election when the FG that is supposed to protect the people and ensure violence-free polls is the same one that purveys violence? Where else in the world do secret police announce themselves by firing to scare away harmless citizens? When did masks become part of the uniform of the State Security Service agents?” the party queried.

Alhaji Muhammed reminded the DSS officials that the guns they used to terrorize the people were given to them by taxpayers, hence it was unacceptable for them to turn their guns against the same people.

The party therefore called on local and international election observers to take note of the pre-election intimidation tactics by the opposition which it claimed were designed solely to scare people away from the polling booths and provide the necessary atmosphere for “electoral malfeasance”.

It stressed it would not accept the same “hear-no-evil, see-no-evil” of the present administration and President Jonathan which it said was reputed for repeated assurance of credible poll, whereas his actions and cabinet members ran contrary.