Ondo APC ratifies suspension of Ward Chairman over alleged attack on Commissioner

DAMISI OJO, Akure

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State on Tuesday ratified the suspension of its ward chairman in Arigidi/Iye Ward 1, Mr. Olumide Awolumate, indefinitely.  

The leaders and stakeholders of the party in Akoko North West Local Government area of the State met in Okeagbe, where the decision was taken, and communicated to the State Chairman, Engr. Ade Adetimehin.  

The action of the local chapter is in line with the directive of the State Secretariat in Akure on Monday, after the show of shame on Saturday.

The suspended ward executive member engaged in violent, deplorable, and lamentable conduct that has dragged the State Government, and the party’s image into serious disrepute.

“In furtherance to the above, the leadership of the party in Akoko North West deem it fit to officially inform the State Secretariat that Awolumate Olumide is hereby suspended indefinitely from the party in Akoko North West of our great party”, the letter read in part.

Adetimehin, on receipt of the suspension letter, assured that the State Secretariat would set up a formidable disciplinary Committee immediately to ensure that the suspended Awolumate is appropriately punished, to serve as deterrent to other leaders and members of the party.  

However, the accused ward Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akoko North West Ward 1, Olumide Awolumate, has explained the reasons for his altercation with the government official.

Speaking with reporters, Awolumate said the Commissioner invaded his home with her son, a police officer and another young man to arrest him while he never resisted arrest, but the Commissioner’s son confronted him and pounced on him.

Awolumate however, said the confrontation resulted in a fracas which lasted for some minutes with the woman commissioner and her son who accompanied her beating him and had to defend himself.

The embattled APC ward Chairman said: “what happened is that we had a meeting at the local government level, at the house of a leader, Pa Akeju, we talked about the party, in which the commissioner for woman affairs talked about the palliatives that was distributed sometimes ago.

“The commissioner disclosed that the palliatives had been given to different sectors, and at that juncture, I raised my hand as the ward chairman of the party that the ten bags that suppose to be in my custody did not get to me. I noted that some groups had been given, which include, PDP, artisans and groups and said ours should be sent to me .

“I raised this in the presence of all the leaders of the party, and the Commissioner objected to this, saying she was the head of that committee at the state level, but I objected my non inclusion in the sharing of the palliative, as I was not invited.

“This led to an argument and i was prevail upon to leave the meeting but I was at home with my family playing ludo when I saw the commissioner in company of her son and the police office’ .

“Her son pounced on me from behind and started hitting me, but I cannot sit and fold my arms to allow him hitting me in the presence of my own wife, children and friends. I stood up and fight him back, as I was fighting him; the commissioner joined her son and fight me also.

She started beating and tearing my cloth in the process, she carried a chair and threw it at me and in retaliation I took the chair and threw it back at her.

“To my surprise I started seeing a video circulating, anybody that study the video would see it has been doctored and edited, it was so short, it was a planned work, they knew what they are coming to do in my house, they have arranged for somebody to video the scene, I never expected something of such”

He however, attributed the friction between him and the involvement of the Commissioner in anti party activities, saying “the woman was involved in anti party activities, the last state Assembly election. His son was the coordinator of a particular candidate in PDP, the woman actively involved in their campaign, they used the woman official vehicle to go round the town and campaign for PDP and this did not go down well with party faithful from the ward.

“When the issue of palliative came about, she chooses to call this PDP she worked for then, against our candidate in the election, they were the ones she put in charge of the palliatives and this did not go down well with the party members.

Osadahun was severely beaten after a dispute over the distribution of fuel subsidy removal palliatives allocated to the state by the Federal Government.

The APC chieftain was seen in a viral social media video striking the Ondo commissioner with a plastic chair and even attempting to hit her with a blue table before onlookers intervened at the scene.

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