The gubernatorial candidate of Accord Party (AP) in last Saturday’s election in Oyo State, Senator Rasheed Ladoja, has been warned to desist from igniting crisis in the state, having lost to the incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

Ajimobi polled 327,300 votes as against Ladoja’s 254,510, but the former governor has since rejected the results, alleging irregularities.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in a statement issued in Ibadan yesterday by its Director of Publicity and Strategy, Mr. Olawale Sadare, faulted Ladoja’s rejection of the outcome of the poll, which it described as free, fair and credible unlike the one witnessed in 2003 when Ladoja emerged governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

“Having tried unsuccessfully to railroad himself into power again, Ladoja is still determined to truncate the peace in the state. He has moved a step further from discrediting the free, fair and credible election in the state last Saturday by mobilising his supporters and vulnerable youths to embark on protests in parts of Ibadan, the state capital.

“Yesterday, he held a meeting in Ibadan where he told his supporters about the resolve not to accept the outcome of the poll. Sources at the meeting informed us that Ladoja charged his supporters to do everything possible to wage war against the governor and his party men in the mode of harassment, blackmail and violent attacks.

“Ladoja’s supporters demonstrated their threat to public peace when they went to town after the meeting and began to attack innocent citizens. They wounded some people and destroyed many vehicles in the process and the trend would continue to enable them achieve their aim of making the state ungovernable for Senator Ajimobi.

“Therefore, we urged members of the public, including leaders and members of the APC to be watchful and vigilant so as not to fall prey of the rampaging supporters of Ladoja. We equally call on security agencies to beam their searchlight on the former governor and his supporters with a view to preventing them from causing further havoc to public peace,” he said.

*Adapted from National Mirror. Photo shows Ladoja

Update news