THERE was a palpable tension in Ido town, Ido local government headquarters, on Wednesday as tens of Mobile policemen were seen marauding the ancient town of Ido, Oyo state, Nigeria.

A quick check by our correspondent revealed that the presence of several policemen in the town was a proactive move by the police authority in the council to prevent the flame of political violence which would have resulted had the former chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Pastor Samuel Akintokun, was allowed to carry out his wish of
organising his faction’s general meeting in Ido Car Park, the usual venue for the party’s general meeting in the council, from burning.

Our investigations further revealed that trouble began when the leadership of the APC announced the removal of Pastor Akintokun,the erstwhile party chairman, during the party’s last general meeting which was attended by all the party’s stakeholders in the council held recently at Ido Car Park, Ido town.

His removal was as a result of a motion moved by the council’s party youth leader and one of the seventeen local executive members present, Comrade Yusuff Akeem, calling for the removal of Pastor Akintokun due to what he regarded as the erstwhile party chairman’s refusal to organise the party’s general meetings as at when due where key decisions that bother on the party’s development are taken, his failure to attend the party’s key events as well as gross abuse of office.

The motion which was seconded by another local executive members nicknamed ‘Ogun’ was adopted by the council’s party executive members and thereafter unanimously chose Alhaji Dauda Akanji as the acting chairman.

This removal, however, did not augur well with Pastor Akintokun faction, saying that the process for his removal was illegal and contrary to the party’s constitution and vowed to resist
it, stressing, that he still remains the party’s chairman in the council.

Similarly, our checks unearthed that efforts were made by the APC party leadership at the state’s level to resolve the issue amicably but the council’s party executive members stood their ground
saying that the decision to remove Pastor Akintokun as Ido LG APC chairman was irreversible.

But, in a bid to show his popularity among the party faithful in the local government and proved that he still remains the council’s party chairman, Pastor Akintokun, approached the police authority in the local government informing them of his decision to organise his party’s general meeting, but the police authority declined his request citing a document in their possession signed by the party’s relevant stakeholders which states that he has been removed.

Undaunted by this decline, the ex-party chairman tendered another request on Wednesday to the police authority but when it was declined again based on the same document, Pastor Akintokun was said to have reported the matter to some powerful forces in the party which our check revealed to be two federal lawmakers who called the council’s Divisional Police Officer, to allow him carry out his wish.

Our correspondent learned that it was at this point that the council’s Divisional Police Officer, DPO informed the state’s Commissioner of Police of his dilemma, he was, however, told to bring Pastor Akintokun and Alhaji Dauda Akanji, the party’s acting chairman to the force’s state headquarter at Eleyele for discussion where the duo were detained.

Mega Icon Magazine also gathered that had it not been for the prompt invitation of police to Ido town by the council’s care-taker chairman, Hon. Wahab Oladejo, with a view to maintaining law and orderliness, political violence would have erupted as party faithful who were part of the process that saw to the removal of Pastor Akintokun as the council’s party chairman had vowed to prevent the general meeting had the erstwhile party chairman allowed to organise it saying that Pastor Akintokun had ceased to be the council’s party chairman.

But according to a source within Pastor Akintokun’s camp, the purported removal of the erstwhile party chairman was due to what the camp of the present care-taker chairman perceived as the roles played by him during the December 2014 primary elections which saw to the failure of Hon. Oladejo to cling Ido/Ibarapa – East Federal Constituency ticket won by the then incumbent, Hon. Sunday Adepoju, who is from Eruwa in Ibarapa- East Local Government and who went ahead to win the constituency during the general elections for the second time running after succeeding Hon. Yemi Taiwo from the same council in 2011.

Another source claims that the ‘sin’ of the erstwhile party chairman was his refusal to bow for the powerful party chieftains in the council who are followers and loyalists to the state governor’s quest to produce his successor.

“Besides the reasons cited by council’s executive members for the removal of Pastor Akintokun as the party chairman, the real reason for his removal is the man’s penchant to see himself as LAMIST, a group who are steadfast allies of the former Oyo State governor, Late Alhaji Lam Adesina, first before seeing himself as APC member. The LAMISTS believe they are the founding members of the party, thus, seeing other members, especially, the SENACO, a group who are loyal and followers of the the state’s governor, Abiola Ajimobi’s political ideology, as their ‘junior’.

“Thus, Pastor Akintokun’s activities in the party are geared towards the realisation of the objectives of the LAMIST group first before the general interests of the party he chaired.

“This was what made him to support Hon. Adepoju, a staunch member of LAMIST, during the 2014 primary of Ido/Ibarapa-East federal Constituency at the expense of other aspirants from his own local government, faulting the aged norms and agreement between Ido and Ibarapa East Local Governments”, the source who doesn’t want his name published told Mega Icon Magazine.

But in a swift reaction, when contacted, the care-taker chairman, Ido Local government, Hon. Wahab Oladejo, has debunked the allegation that he had a hand in the erstwhile party chairman’s removal, saying that his removal is purely and strictly a party affairs and not his business.

“That accusation that I had a hand in Pastor Akintokun’s removal as party chairman is baseless and unfounded. What happened was a democracy in action. All the leaders we have in Ido LG namely; Alhaji Kamorudeen Ajisafe, Pa
Oladejo Lankodoro and Alhaji Bashiru Babalola backed the decision made by our council’s executive members which saw to the removal of Pastor Akintokun as our party Chairman, so who am I to say no to the decision made by our council’s highest decision making body”? Oladejo asked rhetorically.

He continued, “those who know me very well know that I am an advocate of party supremacy, the party executive organ and the party leadership have made a decision and they submitted the
document which have their signatures appended on it regarding that decision to the relevant authority, so what is my business in that? My job as the Chief Security Officer in the council is to prevent and nip, any form of violence noticed in any part of the council, in the bud and that’s exactly what the police had done.

“I want to commend the police authority both at the local and the state for doing a good job, they really had the situation under control.

“Meanwhile, I want to say this that, our executive governor had said that APC under his leadership is one, hence, there is nothing like LAMIST or SENACO. Anyone who is at the vanguard of this spurious claim, is just looking for something to eat”, he concluded.

Meanwhile, another source claimed that, with the general elections seem to be getting nearer, more of these developments would be coming
into fore, adding that all these moves by these political gladiators are geared towards having a total control of the party not only in Ido LG but also throughout the state and country.

Mega Icon Magazine further probes revealed that the two detained party chieftains had since been released on Thursday after inviting all the relevant stakeholders in the council to give statements regarding the incidence.

The police has, however, warns the people that it would not tolerate breakdown of law and order from anyone.