Tribunal: Osun APC, PDP trade allegations

The All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State, on Saturday, accused each other of plans to cause mayhem in the state.

A statement by the APC signed by its chairman, ‘Gboyega Famoodun, had accused the PDP of planning to unleash attack on its witnesses at the tribunal hearing of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola’s petition against Senator Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the last July governorship poll and run them out of town.

The APC also accused the PDP of planning mayhem regardless the outcome of the tribunal just to create impression that Oyetola’s administration was unpopular in the state.

It said some people in the opposition party in the state wanted to use intra-party crises within its fold to cause mayhem in the state.

“It is based on the aforementioned reasons that we are strongly informing the discerning members of the public and soliciting the legal instrumentality of statutory security apparatus through which the plan of the state PDP to plunge our state into chaos could be nipped in the bud in the interest of the security of the people,” the APC concluded.

But reacting to the allegations, Osun State PDP Caretaker Chairman, Akindele Adekunle, said the APC had perfected plot to burn down the State Office of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Osogbo, targeting specifically the strong room where Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines used for the last governorship poll were kept.

The PDP also said the APC was raising the alarm of insecurity to force change of venue of the Tribunal sitting to Abuja, because it was scared of the expected ease of verification and consequent invalidation of its claim of over-voting, if the Tribunal sittings continue in Osogbo.

The party also alleged that the APC had concluded plans to halt further sitting of the tribunal, while it perfected plan to expose the BVAS machines to doctoring, if the panel sitting should be relocated.

While reaffirming his party’s opposition to relocation of the Tribunal to Abuja, the PDP chairman stated that the ruling party was already searching for evidence to convince the Court of Appeal to approve the relocation.

“Osun State is fully secured. The Tribunal sitting is ongoing without incident. Despite the shamelessness of a state government indicting itself with fake alarm, we reiterate that there is no justification for the push for relocation except the fear of failure of the APC’s defective petition,” the PDP concluded.