Four die as thugs clash during APC primaries

Our correspondent gathered that the crisis was the
aftermath of a primary election conducted for two
candidates of the All Progressives Congress ─ Oladele
Adekanye (Lado) and Bashiru Oloto.
The two men were aspiring to get the APC ticket to represent
the Lagos Mainland Constituency one in the 2015 elections.
Our correspondent learnt that the primary was won by Lado,
a former council chairman.
PUNCH Metro gathered that immediately the results were
announced, more than 100 hoodlums from Apapa Road,
who wielded guns, among other weapons, trooped into the
streets to create mayhem.
Our correspondent counted four damaged vehicles on Kano
Street, three on Ibadan Street, seven on Odunfa Street and
six on Ondo Street.
Those who were shot and cut with machetes were said to
have been evacuated.
A resident, who pleaded anonymity, said one person was
shot on Simpson Street, two died on Lagos Street, while one
was killed on Ibadan Street.
He said, "The boys are from Apapa Road. They cannot be
less than 100 because they were many and had double-
barreled guns, cutlasses and others. They shot sporadically
into the air and attacked people.
"Apart from the four persons that were shot dead, many
more were seriously injured and were rushed to hospitals."
A trader on Kano Street, Tolulope Salaam, said the gang
carted away all her wares which she estimated at N60, 000.
At the Kano junction, handsets and other products on
display were reportedly carted away by the rampaging
hoodlums.
When our correspondent visited Ibadan Street, where the
primary election took place, he observed that the road was
deserted.
A mechanic in the area, Musbau Agbogun, wondered how
the security agencies could not repel the attack.
He said, "I have been seeing them patrolling the area. I also
saw men of the Department of State Service and policemen
from Denton division moving round. Despite that, innocent
lives were wasted. If this can happen in the party primaries,
what should we expect in the real election?"
A victim, Gideon Makinde, whose Toyota Camry was
vandalised told PUNCH Metro that he parked his car by a
side of the road.
A resident, Abdulhamed Kareem, explained that some of the
hoodlums broke into his sister's supermarket, and took all
the money in the drawer.
He showed our correspondent a commercial bus that was
riddled with bullets.
He said, "The man inside the bus was hit by a bullet and has
been rushed to a hospital," he added.
It was learnt that the same scenario almost played out
during another APC primaries in the Ogudu area, but for the
intervention of the police.
It was learnt that protesters in Ogudu were prevented from
fomenting trouble during the primary.
The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Kenneth Nwosu, said
nobody died in the Ebute Meta incident.
He said, "There was a congress in the place this afternoon.
When they finished and announced the result, some persons
attempted to cause commotion.
"We were able to protect the materials and the officials, who
were escorted out of the scene without any harm. One
person was shot and he was taken to the hospital. There is
no record of death."
He added that the election in the Ogudu area was peaceful
and there was no shooting.
He said, "Election was held around a police station in Ogudu,
and some people came from Oworonshoki and started
chanting protest songs. They were asked to leave."
The APC spokesperson for Lagos State, Joe Igbokwe, said he was not aware of any mayhem.

Source: punch