The Osun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has raised alarm over the alleged listing of 25 state officials for arrest and abduction by special security teams from Abuja. In a statement signed by the Osun PDP chairman, Sunday Bisi, it was revealed that the security team planned to carry out the arrests without a warrant of arrest, with the operation set to commence in the new week.
The targeted individuals include four special advisers, five party leaders, and 15 other state officials, who are expected to be moved to Abuja upon their arrest. The PDP chairman, Sunday Bisi, expressed concerns over the planned arrests, highlighting that the move was exposed by members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state who boasted about using federal might to victimize Osun government officials and PDP leaders.
Bisi called on the police and the Department of State Services to remain impartial and avoid political partisanship. He also urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene and prevent the harassment and victimization of PDP members in the state, emphasizing that any security operation against Osun State officials would violate their constitutional rights.
In response, the Osun APC chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, dismissed the PDP’s allegations as baseless, attributing them to a tactic to divert attention from questions surrounding the contract procurement process supervised by the Adeleke government. Lawal accused the PDP of attempting to obscure the issue of the state government awarding over N50bn road contracts to unqualified companies and party affiliates lacking the necessary expertise for road construction projects.
The tensions between the Osun PDP and APC escalated further when the opposition party accused Governor Ademola Adeleke of awarding contracts to unqualified companies linked to his cronies and family members. Despite the PDP’s defense of Adeleke and the ongoing projects in the state, the government subsequently unveiled a committee to investigate and prosecute those implicated in the contracts awarded by the previous administration.
The conflict between the two political parties underscores the power struggle and allegations of corruption within the Osun State government, with both sides trading accusations and seeking to discredit each other’s actions. As the situation unfolds, the fate of the arrested officials and the outcome of the investigations remain uncertain, raising concerns about the political landscape in Osun State.
