The Edo State Government has faulted the reported assassination attempt on the Deputy Governor of Edo State and a gubernatorial aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Dr Pius Odubu.
In a statement issued on Sunday by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation! Kassim Afegbua, the government condemned the incident at Auchi, but noted that the conclusion of the Odubu Campaign Organisation on alleged assassination attempt appears hasty.
The government said preliminary reports suggest that the fracas at Auchi was caused by thugs loyal to the Odubu campaign imported in two truck-loads to Auchi who attacked other party loyalists not in support of the Deputy Governor’s aspiration.
Odubu, on Saturday reportedly escaped death by the whiskers when gunmen shot at him at the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Auchi while receiving a delegation.
The attack took place a few minutes after Governor Adams Oshiomhole and Odubu left a party organised by Damian Lawani, representative of the Estako Central Constituency in the House of Assembly.
Afegbua said ”It is instructive to note that the Deputy Governor was inside the secretariat building of the APC in the company of the Party Chairman in the Local Government, Alhaji Umoru Akokhia, addressing the delegates while thugs loyal to him who had become unruly fired gunshots at other APC loyalists who were outside protesting against his visit.
”We gathered authoritatively that the first shots were, in fact, fired by Odubu’s security details in an attempt to scare away the party faithful who were against the hoodlums imported to their domain by the Odubu Campaign Organisation, before thugs loyal to him fired at the party’s loyalists.
“It should be noted that among those who sustained injuries are APC loyalists who are presently receiving medical attention in the hospital. It is laughable that the Odubu Campaign Organisation will allege that the Deputy Governor, with full compliments of security details, was shot at yet no casualty was recorded on the other side and nobody apprehended.
” Given the above scenario, we find it lousy for anyone to impute assassination theory as propounded by the Odubu Campaign Organisation especially when investigations are still ongoing and the Police are yet to submit their findings on the fracas. A responsible campaign organisation should have waited for investigation reports before jumping into reckless conclusions.”
The Commissioner said the Governor has already directed the Commissioner of Police to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the incident and whoever that is found culpable will be made to face the full wrath of the law no matter how highly placed.
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