Posted by By Eric Ikhilae and Tajudeen Adebanjo on
Prominent Ibadan lawyer Chief Adeniyi Akintola (SAN) yesterday said he would avoid the ancient city for now over alleged attempt on his life on Wednesday.
Prominent Ibadan lawyer Chief Adeniyi Akintola (SAN) yesterday said he would avoid the ancient city for now over alleged attempt on his life on Wednesday.
Akintola, in an interview, said Wednesday's attempt was the fifth on his life in the last three years.
He said he was not deterred and would not be intimidated.
Akintola said: "I have done so before. When the threat was becoming rampant last time, I decided to relocate from Ibadan. I am doing same now. Definitely, I will avoid Ibadan for now."
He said he could not say who was behind the plot to kill him, but that threat to his life began when he got involved in political cases.
He is the lawyer to the All Nigerian Peoples Party's (ANPP) governorship candidate, Senator Abiola Ajimobi.
His words: "This is not the first time they have attempted to kill me. But each time I have been lucky that I have not always been around. We had been attacked physically before, right in the premises of the court. Chief (Wole) Olanipekun and I. That accounted for why he has decided to stay away from the matter."
Akintola, who thanked God for sparing his life, said the incident would not make him abandon the case. He said he would attend the next hearing in the appeal on the petition over the last governorship election in the state.
"I trust the Lord that my life is in the hands of God. I thank him for his mercy and guidance. God has been merciful to me. He has always created avenues for me to escape most of the time. I won't be around. Even when they adopted the traditional method.
"By the grace of God; God sparing my life, I will be there at the next date. No lawyer worth his name will back out of a case because of intimidation. A true lawyer will not allow himself to be intimidated out of a case," Akintola said.
He said he was curious about the coincidence of the attack bid and the withdrawal of his security details by the police.
"The Commissioner (of Police) said it was a directive from above that our security be withdrawn. It was so coincidental that my security and that of my client, Senator Ajimobi, was withdrawn at the same day. And that was on Friday and the matter came up on Monday when they came to my office," he added.
He wondered why it was only in Ibadan that lawyers in election matters were being attacked and killed without the security agencies apprehending anyone.
"It is in this same Ibadan that they killed Jibola Olanipekun and Chief Bola Ige. Before they were killed, the police also withdrew the security personnel attached to them. The question bothering us is that why is it only in Ibadan that lawyers are being attacked? I practised in 26 states of the federation. I have election petitions at various categories in 19 states but had never gone through such an experience," Akintola said.