Chieftain of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in Ondo State, Barrister Tolu Babaleye, alleged on Tuesday a secret plot by the Governor of Ogun State, Ibikunle Amosun, and the Minister of Solid Minerals, Kayode Fayemi, to have members of the party arrested commencing the same day.

Speaking during a press conference, Babaleye said the plot was perfected in Akure on Saturday after the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign grand finale which was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari ahead of the governorship electoral battle.

Babaleye said the plan is to arrest key leaders of the party, including the Director-General of the Olusola Oke campaign outfit, and incarcerate them until after the election.  He stated that the opposing APC adopted the plan after they saw defeat staring them in the face as a result of what he described as the “soaring” popularity of the AD candidate.

He said Buhari as a democrat should not allow desperadoes, hiding under the presidential seal, to commit an electoral heist that would implicate his government, and called on the APC-led federal government to rein in their members to forestall the country’s democracy from being truncated.

“President Buhari is a democrat and we have unflagging confidence in his ability to conduct free, fair and credible polls in Ondo State.,” he said.  “But with the way things are going, it seems Amosun, Fayemi and others are desperate to ensure that the dream of Ondo people is shattered and this will cast a cloudy impression about the ability of the federal government to hold credible elections.”

Describing the plan, he said that as a prelude to the APC’s plan, ex-governor Fayemi had deployed to Ondo State all his foot-soldiers, including those who served under him as Chief of Staff and Special Assistants during his tenure in Ekiti to prepare a propitious ground to effectively hatch their sinister plot.

“Just like we have always been reiterating, these anti-democratic forces will meet a stiff resistance in the collective resolve of Ondo people, who are ready for a free and fair poll that would throw up a candidate that represents the wishes of the people.”

Babaleye asserted that the plan is to arrest the AD’s key leaders, including those perceived to be giving tacit supports to Oke, and take them to Abuja for prosecution in order to destabilize his party’s “well-oiled and well organized campaign outfit,” which he characterized as a hurricane blowing across Ondo State.

He declared: “The people’s power is mightier than any power. The coalition of evil forces against Oke, who is now the God and people’s candidate will fail. It is sad that those who [were] victims of electoral rigging in the past are now constituting themselves as the troubles of Israel and the full wrath of God awaits them.

“No matter the evil machinations, Oke stands like a rock of Gibraltar. He is unshakable because democracy is a game of numbers and we have the people behind us”, he concluded.

Saharareporters