The Department of State Services (DSS) has taken the Chairman of Sagamu Local Government, Hon. Afolabi Odulate, and the member of the Ogun State House of Assembly representing Sagamu 2 Constituency, Hon. Ademola Adeniran, into custody as part of their ongoing investigation into the recent cult killings in Sagamu, Ogun State. The arrests were made on Tuesday at the DSS office in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
According to credible sources, Odulate and Adeniran were interrogated by the DSS for their alleged involvement in the cult clashes that resulted in the deaths of approximately 20 individuals in Sagamu. This follows the earlier detention of Hon. Damilare Bello, the representative of Sagamu 1 Constituency, on the same matter.
While the Ogun State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Alamutu, stated on Sunday that the cultists in Sagamu were not students or affiliated with any political party, the DSS has continued its investigation into members of both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Although Hon. Bello remains in DSS custody, Hon. Odulate and Hon. Adeniran were released on Wednesday. This has led the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State to accuse the DSS and other security agencies of being used as tools for political witch-hunts by the APC and its government.
In a statement, the spokesperson for the PDP in Ogun, Akinloye Bankole, claimed that the DSS succumbed to pressure from the ruling party in releasing Odulate and Adeniran, while keeping Bello in custody. Bankole also alleged that Odulate had connections to some of the cultists involved in the killings.
Bankole expressed the party’s disappointment, stating, “We condemn, in the strongest terms, the haste with which the DSS has released Odulate, despite his connection to some of the cultists. Meanwhile, a strong opposition figure like Hon. Damilare Bello, ‘DRE,’ the representative of Sagamu 1 State Constituency, who was arrested before them, still languishes in the DSS facility.”
He further added, “The release of these APC members indicates a clear and deliberate attempt to cover up all the details surrounding the Sagamu killings. How else can we explain a situation where someone who was found with no incriminating evidence is left to suffer while notorious individuals like Ogbeni Afolabi Odulate, who has a record of gun-running, are allowed to go home simply because of their affiliation with the ruling party?”
The PDP spokesperson concluded by expressing sympathy for the innocent people of Sagamu town and the entirety of Ogun State, stating that this was a tragic moment for them.
