By Chinelo Obogo
Lagos state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)Jide Adediran for violence unleashed by his supporters in the Surulere area of the state.
IReacting to a viral video showingarmed supporters in campaign vehicles of the Lagos PDP governorship candidate ‘Jandor’ engaging in gun battle with political opponents in Surulere, the publicity secretary of the party, Seye Oladejo, said the attack is a ploy to instill fear in the hearts of voters and cause apathy.
“Our attention has been drawn to the terror unleashed on innocent and law abiding citizens of Lagos state by the gubernatorial candidate, Jide Adediran, otherwise known as Jandor in the course of his campaign in Surulere Local Government.
“The incident left in its wake several injured victims and three people reportedly died. We condemn in strong terms the unwarranted and unprovoked resort to violence on the citizens of the state in the name of electioneering campaign.
“In broad daylight, Jandor’s thugs fired guns at their hapless victims who ran for dear lives. Lagos cherishes its enviable status as the safest state in the country – a result of long running and painstaking investment in security.
“We view this attack as a ploy to instill fear in the hearts of would-be voters as we count down to the elections. It’s pathetic to note that a candidate seeking to govern the state could be seen actively promoting violence to disrupt the peace of the citizens. The PDP and it’s candidate have been busy in the past few days, have been crying in the media that their posters were being torn. Unknown to me public he perfected his evil plans which manifested at his rally.
“While we can imagine the untold misery and frustration that his faltering campaign might have visited on him, it ought not to result in the thirst for the blood of potential voters. We hereby call on the law enforcement agencies to thoroughly investigate the incident , bring the culprits to book and beef security across the state with the obvious desperation of the opposition PDP in order to forestall a reoccurrence. We urge Lagosians to remain calm and law abiding as the state government remains irrevocably committed to its onerous duty of ensuring the safety of lives and properties of all and sundry,” Oladejo said.