The African Democratic Congress in Ekiti State has berated the All Progressives Congress in the state for alleged politically motivated violence and attacks on opposition party members ahead of the 2026 governorship election.
ADC state chairman, Ilesanmi Omolayo, in a statement in Ado Ekiti, on Sunday, accused the APC of desperation, saying that the ruling party was “pushing the state towards chaos ahead of the election.”
But the APC State Publicity Secretary, Segun Dipe, countered ADC’s allegations as “noise of attention-seeking starters who are green to Ekiti politics” and accused the opposition party of importing insecurity into the state and attempting to create an atmosphere of artificial crisis.
Dipe said, “APC is a peaceful party, a peaceful association, and we are not desperate. We are on the ground, and we are formidable. ADC is unknown to Ekiti, so how can they be complaining of being intimidated?”
The ADC state chairman, Omolayo, mentioned the disruption of a meeting of his party members in Ikere Ekiti, alleging that armed thugs invaded the gathering, unleashed mayhem on citizens, injured some persons, vandalised vehicles and motorcycles, and carted away personal belongings.
He described the incident as “a reckless abuse of democracy and a deliberate attempt to silence opposition.”
He added, “What happened in Ikere Ekiti is not an isolated event. It is part of a bigger plot by the APC to intimidate, harass and silence every opposition voice ahead of the 2026 election.
“A party that should be engaging the electorate with ideas and policies is, instead, breeding violence. This is a dangerous path that must be stopped immediately. We call on security agencies, the Independent National Electoral Commission, civil society groups, traditional rulers and religious leaders to act swiftly before the situation degenerates.”
“Ekiti people must see clearly what is happening. APC has no ideology beyond violence and selfish ambition. Our state deserves a future founded on stability, vision and hope, not fear and bloodshed.”
He said that ADC remained the credible alternative, stressing the party’s commitment to “people-oriented ideology anchored on peace, inclusiveness and development.”
But the spokesperson of the ruling party, Dipe, said that Governor Oyebanji had been doing a good job in the area of security and other areas of governance and need not foist violence on the opposition.
Dipo said, “Nobody is disturbing them from parading themselves as starters, but to say that APC is threatening them or is creating a crisis, they are only trying to create artificial problems for themselves and crying wolf where there is none. If there is anybody who has attacked them, they should look out for those people and pick them up.
“More so, since they don’t know how political parties operate, if you want to have any gathering or grouping, inform the police so that they can provide security for you. By so doing, there won’t be a need for you people to start attacking yourselves, there won’t be a need for you to be shouting that you are being threatened or you have been attacked.”
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