By Nseobong Okon-Ekong
Delegates to the All Progressives Congress national convention loyal to two factions of the party in Delta State on Saturday fought at the Eagle Square, venue of the convention.
The free-for-all fight in which broken tables, chairs and bottled were used to pelt opponents started when loyalists of Chief Otega Emerhor, a former governorship aspirant for Delta State on the ticket of the APC, and Chief Victor Ochei, a former speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, attempted to dislodge supporters of Senator Ovie Omo-Agege who had already occupied the pavilion allocated to delegates from Delta State.
Many delegates in the Omo-Agege faction sustained injuries as their opponents unleashed a surprised attack that sent them scampering for safety. The Ochei/Emerhor faction took over the Delta pavilion, but it was for a brief spell.
The Ochei/Emerhor delegates had hardly settled down when the Omo-Agege group launched a counter attack that sent supporters in the Ochei/Emerhor faction running.
The melee occurred as President Muhammadu Buhari was addressing the delegates.
Security agents including soldiers, policemen and members of the civil defence corps at the venue quickly moved in to prevent the fight from escalating.
The fight between the contending delegates from Delta state affected the sitting arrangement, as delegates from Cross River and Edo states whose pavilion were positioned close to the Delta pavilion took to their heels to escape flying missiles.
