•Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State and Senator Francis Fadahunsi
Senator Francis Fadahunsi has dismissed claims of inciting violence ahead of the Osun governorship election, as Governor Ademola Adeleke has requested the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Tunji Disu, to arrest and investigate the lawmaker over a comment credited to him.
A viral clip on social media showed Fadahunsi allegedly asking his supporters to kill any member of the Accord Party seen in Ilesa, a town in the state, before the governorship election on Saturday, reports Channels TV.
However, in a statement yesterday, Fadahunsi debunked the claim as a “deliberate misrepresentation”.
The lawmaker stated he was addressing the “continued killing of APC members” by alleged thugs in Ilesa, maintaining that his party would “defend its people” if the violence persisted.
“The video was deliberately edited to distort what I actually said,” Senator Fadahunsi stated. “What I said was that if the alleged killing of our party members by Accord Party thugs does not stop, our party will retaliate. I was referring to the continued violence and attacks against our members in Ilesa and other parts of the state.”
“My statement was very clear: if the killings do not stop, we shall also retaliate. We are here to lodge complaints and demand justice. It is unacceptable for human beings to kill fellow human beings the way our members are allegedly being killed in Ilesa,” he added.
“All those being killed are Nigerians and, indeed, sons and daughters of the same communities. I stated unequivocally that if our party members are killed again, we will not simply fold our arms and watch. We will defend our people, even if such an incident occurs on election day. Unfortunately, Davido and Olajengbesi took less than two minutes from a speech that lasted about 24 minutes and circulated it to achieve cheap political objectives. This is a clear case of deliberate misrepresentation and manipulation,” he said.
Adeleke Demands Arrest Of Lawmaker
Meanwhile, Governor Adeleke has accused Fadahunsi of inciting violence and “genocide” against members of the Accord Party.
He has requested a thorough investigation to prevent the actualisation of such threats, adding that nobody, no matter how highly placed, should be above the law.
In a press conference yesterday, the governor demanded the “immediate arrest” of the lawmaker whose comment he described as a “national security threat”.
“This is now beyond politics. This is now a national security threat that requires the attention of Mr President through the office of the National Security Adviser. I have raised this issue with the IGP and demanded the immediate investigation and arrest of Senator Fadahunsi. The IGP has confirmed the video and assured me of immediate action,” Adeleke said.
“We request that the IGP should stop the illegal operations of IRT, a team that has been arresting Accord Party leaders across the local governments for no just reason. We ask that the police and the DSS immediately arrest Senator Fadahunsi for his incitement to genocide against the people of Ijesahland and Osun State. This is to prove to the world that Nigeria is a state governed by the rule of law.”
