Insecurity: Afenifere Chieftain, Ayo Adebanjo, Berates South West Governors

Insecurity: Afenifere Chieftain, Ayo Adebanjo, Berates South West Governors
  • Eyewitnesses narrate how Fasoranti’s daughter died

James Sowole in Akure

A leader of the Pan Yoruba Socio Political Organisation. Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo Saturday berated the governors of South West saying that they were not doing what was expected on the spate of insecurity in the region.

Adebanjo spoke when he led some members of Afenifere on a condolence visit to the National Leader of the organisation. Chief Reuben Fasoranti, on the killing of his daughter, Mrs Funke Olakunrin, by gunmen on Friday at Kajola on Ore- Sagamu Expressway.

Adebanjo, who betrayed emotion and burst into tears in the presence of the deceased father, the governors of Oyo and Ondo states and security chiefs in Ondo State.

He said: “You governors, you are supposed to defend us but for one reason or the other, you fail in that task . Our people were being kidnapped, our people are being raped, our people are being killed yet you keep quite”.

While speaking with journalists, the Oyo State Governor, Mr Seyi Makinde, said this was not the time for political statement or colouration.

He said: “What happened is something very serious and if it has happened to somebody ordinary we would never hear anything.

“All the governors from the South West held a security summit and we are serious about it and we will take this seriously and what has happened will make us to double up our effort.

“This is suppose to be a federation with federal system and both the state government and the federal government and one should not be surbodinate to other and we will continue to fight for true federalism and for the opportunity to be able to protect our people because it is so fundamental that we have to do it.

“This is the time to come together in unity to fight for our people, it is not the time to fight or look at ourselves as belonging to different ideological set up or different political parties.

“It is the time to bring the agenda of Yoruba land forward and fight it collectively. It is sad that something like this has to happen to nudge us to this direction. I want to seek everybody support and we will provide the leadership and we are not going to turn our back to the people.”

Meanwhile, a new twist was added to the incident when an aide to the deceased, Oke Oladeinde, gave an insight into the incident.

Oladeinde, who sustained a minor injury on his lips, said policemen that came to the scene demanded money to purchase fuel before they can carry mummy to hospital.

Oke, who was also in the same vehicle with the deceased, said his boss may not have died if not for the delay they encountered in taking her to the hospital.

Oke said, ” The people (bandits) were about 20 in number, they shot at our vehicle, as we were about reversing the vehicle, they shot mummy (Olakunrin). When the policemen came we begged them to assist us in taking her to the hospital, one of them asked us to bring N1000 for them to fuel their vehicle.

“May be if we had gotten to the hospital on time, she would have survived it because she lost a lot of blood. She died when we got to the hospital.”

Similarly, the driver of the deceased’s vehicle, Mr. Tayo Ogundare, said the attackers wore marsks while carrying out the operation.

He said, ” We were on our way to Lagos, but some minutes after the Ore Toll Gate, these men just rushed out from the bush, and started shooting us , I can’t say exactly their number, but they were many. They were shooting sporadically.

” So, mummy asked me to reverse but they kept shooting at our vehicle. As I was trying to reverse, mummy was shot but she did not die on the spot, she got to the hospital before she gave up the ghost.”

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