Senator Dino Melaye’s country home at Ayetoro-Gbede in Kogi State was shelled by gunmen early Saturday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the gunmen surrounded the house after midnight and opened fire from different directions.

Two of the senator’s vehicles parked in the house were damaged. The senator was not harmed.

Melaye, (APC-Kogi West), was in his country home at Ayetoro-Gbede in Ijumu Local Government Area for the Easter holiday at the time of the attack.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, ASP William Aya told NAN that the police received a distress call from the senator at about 1 a.m. and immediately responded.

He said the hoodlums escaped before the police arrived, thereby making any arrest impossible.

Aya said the Commissioner of Police, Mr Wilson Inalegwu, had set up an investigation committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of operations to unravel those behind the attack.

On his part, Melaye said the hoodlums arrived at about midnight and started shooting sporadically at the main building in the compound.

He said the shooting lasted for almost one hour, adding that apart from the building riddled with bullets, two of his vehicles were damaged.

The senator said he suspected Mr Taufiq Isa, the Administrator of Ijumu Local Government to be behind the attack.

According to him, the attack was politically motivated, because of his criticism of the State Government.

He said: “I got a rousing welcome from Kabba to my home town on Friday and I know it angered the power that be in the state which mobilised for this assassination attempt on my life.

“At about midnight, we started hearing gunshots. They fired more than 200 rounds of bullets into the house. This attempt to kill me will not stop me from speaking the truth.

“If I speak the truth, I will die. If I lie, I will die. I’ve decided to speak the truth and die. I’m not afraid of death. I only respect men, I don’t fear them.

“I am championing an administrative cause. I will continue to speak and be the voice to the voiceless. I’m not deterred; I remain resolute to make Kogi better. Noting will stop me from coming home.”

Melaye also chided the police for not responding quickly to his distress call, saying that the house of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in the town was a stone-throw from the scene of the attempt on his life.

“The DPO did not come to my house until three hours later. Even the area Commander in Kabba was not notified until I called the Commissioner of police. I suspect a Satanic collaboration between Taufiq Isa and the police in Aiyetoro because the duo held a meeting two days ago.

“Only God will protect us in this country but definitely not the police”, he said.

In a swift reaction, Isa denied having a hand in the attempt on the life of the Senator, saying that he had been busy for sometime taking care of his sick wife.

“I’ve never been a violent man. My running battle with Dino Melaye, if any, is because I have asked him to stop villifying the state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello.

“Let him (Dino) prove it. I lost my uncle a week ago; I’m still attending to my sick wife and busy supervising the APC re-registration programmes. I’m a democrat and law abiding. I challenge Dino to prove his case,” he said. (NAN)

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