The campaign organisation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, has accused Governor Seyi Makinde’s camp of plotting fresh attacks on opposition supporters and targeting the candidate’s campaign billboards.
The Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation (SSACO), in a statement signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Bisi Oladele, on Sunday, alleged that hoodlums linked to Makinde and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) candidate, Bimbo Adekanmbi, were planning to attack members of the Park Management System (PMS) and other APC supporters.
The organisation said the alleged plan was part of efforts to intimidate opposition members ahead of the 2027 general election. It cited previous attacks in which an APC member reportedly died in Ibadan in October, while several others were injured in separate incidents over the past two months.
SSACO also alleged that campaign billboards bearing Alli’s image had been vandalised or destroyed in parts of the state by suspected agents of the government.
On the alleged plot against APC supporters, the organisation said it had received intelligence suggesting that PMS members were targeting NURTW members who had aligned with the APC, particularly a prominent member known as Oyere and his followers.
It claimed that the alleged attackers monitored APC members at Alli’s manifesto unveiling held at Theophilus Ogunlesi Hall last Tuesday and compiled the names of NURTW members, especially those who recently joined the party.
The campaign organisation also pointed to the large attendance at Oyere’s weekly NURTW meeting at his office, which it said drew hundreds of members, as another development that allegedly heightened tensions.
It further claimed that a meeting held around 10pm on Friday, allegedly at the direction of a member of Makinde’s inner circle, resolved to coordinate attacks on NURTW members supporting the APC and disrupt their weekly gatherings.
According to SSACO, the alleged objective was to weaken the APC’s support base ahead of the elections.
The organisation also accused the state government of targeting billboard owners who provide advertising spaces for Alli’s campaign, alleging that the pressure was affecting their businesses and restricting the APC candidate’s ability to campaign.
It described the alleged vandalism and pressure on billboard proprietors as attempts to limit political competition in the state.
Despite the developments, SSACO said the APC would continue its campaign and expressed confidence that the alleged intimidation would not stop residents from voting for Alli and other party candidates in 2027.
The organisation also criticised the state government’s handling of local government administration, education, healthcare and public service delivery.
It called on the Commissioner of Police and other security chiefs to investigate the allegations and take steps to prevent any planned attacks, warning that political disagreements should not put lives and property at risk.
Kehinde Ayanboade
Kehinde Ayanboade is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Naija Metro News, with over eight years of experience covering Nigerian politics, crime, legislative proceedings and metropolitan affairs.
