Sporadic gunshots by security operatives, yesterday, brought to an abrupt end the official flag off of the campaign of Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), held at the SkyPower Ground, Ikeja, Lagos.
The gunshots started when some hoodlums suspected to belong to different factions of the National Union of Road Transportation Workers (NURTW) engaged in a brawl.
While the pandemonium lasted, three journalists were hit by stray bullets. These included the Group Politics Eeditor of The Nation newspaper, Emmanuel Oladesu; a correspondent of NewTelegraph, Temitope Ogunbanke, and the cameraman of Ibile Television, Abiodun Yusuf
The basis for the fight could not be ascertained but in an effort to contain it, security forces including police and civil defence officers shot into the air to disperse the surging crowd. The officers also fired tear gas canisters to nip the brewing crisis in the bud.
However, the crisis still degenerated with both sides of the feuding gangs hurling bottles, stones and other missiles.
The gunshots continued unabated and that led to commotion forcing the party members to run helter skelter. Some members who noticed that the main entrance to the venue of the rally had been blocked quickly resorted to jumping from the venue across Oba Akinjobi road.
Daily Trust observed that a number of the party members sustained injuries while some of the hoodlums who were arrested were taken away in police vehicles.
Earlier, some 63 political parties had declared their support for the candidacy of Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the APC gubernatorial candidate in the state.
Led by Otunba Aderemi Fatugbasi of Action Alliance (AA), the parties under the banner of Coalition of Progressive Parties (CPP) said they were ready for the progressive development of the state, hence the adoption of Sanwo-Olu.
“There are 91 registered political parties in Nigeria. But 63 of us here in Lagos have chosen to support the gubernatorial ambition of Babajide Sanwo-Olu whom we believe will carry on the progressive development of the state,” he said.
“We will use our strength across the 20 local governments and 37 Local Development Councils (LCDA) to mobilise for his support and we will ensure that come March 2019, he, alongside, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, emerge as elected governor and deputy governor respectively,” Fatugbasi said.
Similarly, 2,000 members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Lagos State led by the party’s National Leader, Col. Funsho Ibrahim (rtd), have defected to APC at the campaign flag off ceremony.
Also, a former deputy chairman of Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Shakiru Apena, has announced his defection to APC. The decampees were all given brooms to replace their former parties’ flags.
Meanwhile, Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has called on all APC supporters to support the aspiration of Sanwo-Olu as his successor in office.
Ambode who handed over the party’s flag to Sanwo-Olu, also reminded the party faithful on the need to sustain the progressive tradition already laid by former governor of the state and National Leader of APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, 20 years ago.
He said Sanwo-Olu possessed all the required features of a leader that would build on the “success records” of administrations before him.
Sanwo-Olu on his part assured that he would sustain all the good works of the current administration and called on supporters to work for the party’s success in the forthcoming elections.
