The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Ondo State, has alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, is plotting to use operatives of the Amotekun Corps for the November 16 governorship election in the state.
The opposition party while raising the alarm, stated that the development called for concern following the appointment of the Commander of Amotekun Corps, Akogun Adetunji Adeleye, as Chairman of the Security Committee of the APC campaign council in the state.
While describing the situation as a move to deploy Amotekun operatives as thugs during the poll, the PDP, in a statement signed by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the governorship candidate of the party, Ayo Fadaka, vowed to resist the alleged plot.
“We take serious cognisance of actions the APC continues to take with a view to criminally compromise the November 16th election. These sundry actions, which began weeks ago, are beginning to crystallise.
“They have been given an imprimatur of officialdom with the announcement of a Security Committee under the chairmanship of the State Commander of the Amotekun Corps, Chief Tunji Adeleye.
“We are also aware that “barracks” have been opened for thugs across the state, and we will furnish the police and other security agencies with the addresses of hotels and facilities being used for this purpose.
“We are also aware of plans by APC to cause security scares in a number of local governments where they “say” they will use their primary election template.
Reacting to the allegation, the ruling party described the allegations as false, stressing that the Amotekun Commander was never appointed to any of the committees of the party’s campaign council.
APC, in a statement by its Director of Media and Publicity, Steve Otaloro, who described the allegations as grave, said, “The Amotekun Corps is a professional body dedicated to protecting the people, not engaging in politics. Moreover, we don’t even have a security committee in the Aiyedatiwa Campaign Council.
“The PDP’s allegations of violence, thuggery, and plans to cause security scares are also baseless. In fact, it’s the PDP that’s been crying wolf, trying to distract from their own lack of preparation for the election. We urge the security agencies to investigate these claims and bring perpetrators to justice.”