Wole Balogun, Ado Ekiti
The Special Assistant on Media to Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, Ahmed Salami, has denied the rumour that his principal has been in coma since last Friday evening when he was hit by bullets at a rally organised by the All Progressives Party (APC) for its governorship candidate in the July 14 election, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
Bamidele and six others were hit by bullets and sustained varying degrees of injuries through gunshots fired by a policeman drafted to maintain order at the rally attended by a mammoth crowd of APC faithful in the state.
In a statement in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Salami said though Bamidele immediately fell and passed out due to the trauma he suffered when the bullets suddenly pierced his stomach and leg, he has since been recuperating due to prompt medical attention and treatment.
“The way he fell in the full glare of the crowd and party supporters fueled the insinuation that he is still in coma. Let me assure our supporters in Ekiti and other concerned Nigerians that Bamidele is not in coma. He has regained consciousness and fast recuperating due to prompt and intensive medical treatments he received thereafter.
“It’s true that Bamidele has passed through major surgeries and the bullets have been removed from his abdominal region and leg. We implore our supporters to be calm and be law abiding while the situation is under control.
“We want to say that the shooting was very unfortunate and unwarranted in view of the decorous and peaceful ways our people comported themselves from Akure, Ondo State capital via Ikere and to Ado Ekiti.
“We charge the police authorities to investigate the immediate and remote causes of the shooting and bring whoever that was complicit to justice for a country that has respect for the sanctity of human lives to be attainable”, he said.
Dispelling insinuations that Fayemi had not visited Bamidele since he was hospitalised, spokesman of his campaign organisation, Wole Olujobi, said: “MOB is in a stable condition. No bullet entered from the stomach and came out from the back. A bullet that was lodged in his body was removed yesterday. Fayemi in company of his wife hurriedly left the campaign office yesterday to visit MOB in the hospital contrary to the opposition’s claims. As I write, Fayemi is on his way to the hospital to visit a fast recuperating Bamidele.”