TheCable

The 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) members of the Ekiti state house of assembly who are planning to impeach Ayodele Fayose, governor of the state, have accused the governor of planning to kidnap them in a desperate bid to prevent his impeachment.

They alleged that the governor had devised a stop-and-search plan in connivance with government house security men, who will stop them on major roads in the state, track them, and kidnap them.

The lawmakers “thanked the good people in government” for leaking the plot, and described the operation as “unwarranted  assault”, particularly as the cars targeted for stop-and-search operation would be mainly dark grey  Toyota Camry cars, the brand and colour of the lawmakers’ official cars.

“We are in possession of a report that the governor is exploiting cases of kidnap in the state to break the nationwide ban on roadblock ordered by the inspector-general of police to raise some teams of security men working in the government house to be on our trail to take us out of circulation,” they said in a statement issued by Wole Olujobi, special adviser to speaker of the assembly, Adewale Omirin.

“As we speak, the security men and thugs are in possession of our photographs to identify us after stopping us. They have been told to specifically be on the look-out for dark grey Toyota Camry cars, which are our official cars, to identify us for kidnap to stall his impeachment.

“Part of the instruction is that all vehicles with tinted ‎glasses must be stopped for identification. All our cars are tinted and so that will create the excuse for stopping our cars just to hit their targets.

“This is the latest ploy after other plots had failed. We are also aware that the governor will soon address a press conference where he will allege that some of the lawmakers, who he believes constitute a threat to him, are responsible for cases of kidnapping in the state.

“He is already in the media selling a dummy that the speaker, Omirin, and Senator Babafemi Ojudu are sponsors of kidnapping in the state. The plan is to declare them wanted and then become targets of arrest by security agents.”

The lawmakers urged the state leaders to call the governor to order, and also implored IGP Solomon Arase to “put his men on the alert to stop the activities of criminal gangs bent of frustrating his ‘no roadblock’ order across the country”.

However, the Ekiti state government described the allegation as “evil, wicked and insensitive”, saying “such unwarranted allegation coming from the runaway APC lawmakers was clear exposure of the culpability of the party in the kidnapping of residents of Ekiti state”.

It added that the lawmakers had betrayed their guilt by simply telling Nigerians that they want the kidnapping of Ekiti residents to continue.

“The Fayose-led government will do everything humanly possible to protect lives and properties of Ekiti people and what is expected from genuine lovers of the state is to cooperate with security agencies, and not politicisation of every efforts of the government by the APC,” Lere Olayinka, special assistant to the governor on public communications and new media, said in a statement.

“Isn’t it interesting that elements like Kehinde Boluwade and Folorunso Gabriel Ogundele, who are standing trial for alleged murder, are among the APC lawmakers they claimed Governor Fayose planned to kidnap?

“For the avoidance of doubt, introduction of strict security measures and check points in strategic places across the state, prohibition of the usage of tinted classes, frequent hotel checks, with a call to hoteliers to monitor their customers and offer information to security agents on any suspected person and seal up of any hotel linked to criminals, were resolutions of the Ekiti state security council meeting that took place on Monday.

“Only wicked and evil people, whose agenda is to make Ekiti state ungovernable will kick against these measures that are aimed at securing the lives and properties of the people…

“As it appears, now that the evil plot by this ‘we must rule by fire by force’ elements in the APC to impeach Governor Fayose and his deputy, Dr Olusola Eleka and return to power through the backdoor has failed; they have returned to their old tactics, which is organised crimes!

“Kidnapping and armed robberies have now become rampant in Ekiti as it was in 2009 when they desperately wanted to snatch power from Engr Segun Oni of the PDP.

“However, we wish to assure those whose joy will be to see Ekiti people in pains just because they lost power that they won’t succeed this time. Those whose stock-in-trade is to be Ekiti state ungovernable whenever they lose power should have a rethink, because this time around, Ekiti people will rise in defence of the governor and the government they enthroned with their overwhelming votes.”