Following the drama over the seating arrangement at a prayer ground located in the Oke-Baale area in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, former Senate spokesman, Senator Ajibola Basiru; and the spokesman for Governor Ademola Adeleke, Olawale Rasheed, have traded blame.
Appearing as guests on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday night, Rasheed and Basiru disagreed on what transpired at the prayer ground.
Speaking, Basiru, who lost his re-election to the 10th Senate, claimed some thugs rough-handled him and ordered him to vacate where he was positioned for the Eid prayers.
“The question I asked is whether thugs who harassed me, removed my turban, and rough-handled me were people who are protocol officers trying to secure a seat for Mr Governor?” Basiru queried, adding that he did not see any seat reserved for the governor at the prayer ground.
Countering his claim, Adeleke’s spokesman, dismissed the allegation by the senator, describing Basiru’s claims as untrue.
He said, “The governor was live at the Eid ground today (Wednesday).
“Secondly, it was wrong and false to say there were no seat or protocol officers ahead, like an advanced team. We had a red carpet that was actually laid for the governor. We had three of our protocol officers who were there.
“The senator was wrong to say that there was no advanced party; there was an advanced party, and the place was marked.”
Rasheed said whilst the commotion on the seat arrangement was ongoing after Basiru was told to vacate the space for Adeleke and he resisted, some strange-looking and armed people brought in three buses and encircled the governor.
He said: “We noticed when we entered, it was like we entered into a trap. We noticed armed, strange-looking guys positioned all over strategic positions within the Eid ground.
“When we saw that, we thought they were security people but by the time we entered and we were right close to the front of where we were supposed to pray, we noticed that these people were armed. While we were watching over that, it was at that point we noticed the commotion.
“We quickly sent the governor home, the security people said no, let us go back to the car to secure the governor. By the time we came out again, those strange-looking people were encircling where the governor was staying.”
However, the senator said he did not see any armed strange-looking fellows at the Eid ground and the governor was not in any way threatened.
“I don’t have any personal problem with Governor Adeleke,” Basiru stated, saying there was no assassination attempt on the governor.
The senator said he would have vacated the contested space for the governor but a purported state official who approached him to vacate the so-called seat reserved for Adeleke was a thug who insulted him.
