Posted by By AKEEB ALARAPE, IBADAN on
Loyalists of the Oyo State deputy governor, Alhaji Azeem Gbolarumi, Monday descended on the Special Assistant to the Governor on Communication and Strategy, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, beating him black and blue.
•Deputy gov's aides assault gov's adviser
Loyalists of the Oyo State deputy governor, Alhaji Azeem Gbolarumi, Monday descended on the Special Assistant to the Governor on Communication and Strategy, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, beating him black and blue.
Odeyemi was punched on the face for daring to describe the ambition of the deputy governor to contest the 2007 gubernatorial election as 'an affront to the governor."
Briefing newsmen on Monday in his office, Odeyemi said two men working for the deputy governor forced their way into his office and started beating him less than two hours after the deputy governor called him to his office and threatened to deal with him.
'This morning Monday, the deputy governor called me to his office and asked whether I was the one who said what was written in the Sunday Tribune of June 4 or I was quoted out of context. I told him I was the one that said it and I saw nothing offensive in it.
'He asked me what was my business about the badge being worn by his staff concerning his ambition for 2007. I told him if 2007 was not written on the badge it would have been better, asking him how he would feel if this same set of people print posters with his picture. He said that was his business and not mine.
'In the presence of the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr. Hosea Agboola, the press secretary to the deputy governor, Mr Kunle Olatunji and some policemen, the deputy governor started shouting that he would deal with me severely. He said he can say it anywhere and in the presence of anybody.
'He was shouting on top of his voice and I told him that nobody can kill me because he that does not create cannot destroy. I then left his office", Odeyemi recounted.
Two hours later, Odeyemi said he got a call on his mobile phone and the caller cursed him and threatened to deal with him.
'He told me to go to Ilesa and dictate to them there because I was not around when they were running around to impeach Ladoja.
'As he was saying this, I did not know that they were coming to my office. They forced the door open and two men entered and started beating me."
However, at an earlier media briefing, the deputy governor's media assistant, Mr Demola Solalu, had described Odeyemi as an ill-mannered person, who wanted to cause problem for the government.
'Diran Odeyemi wants to cause problem within this government. He wants to create problem so that he can write proposal on how he can douse the tension. That is his stock in trade.
'We have even heard that he has been contacted by some people to cause problem in the government. If it is not true, I don't think anybody can go to the extent of publicising anything that is an internal problem.
'As a Yoruba man and someone who appreciates the ethics of respect for elders, I can say that Diran was ill-mannered the way he spoke to the deputy governor. The deputy governor deserves to be respected", Solalu stated.
Marathon meetings were held on Monday by the governor and some security personnel on how to nip the crisis in the bud before it escalated.
Personal Assistant to Odeyemi, Mr Kingsley Blessing, said the attackers gave them a stern warning, after beating his boss, that they should not sleep in their houses.
The deputy governor's aides who attacked Odeyemi have already been suspended from office and directed to vacate government quarters immediately.
The directive for their suspension, according to the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the governor, Mr. Abraham Ojo, was issued by Governor Akala as an immediate disciplinary measure.