At least five loyalists of the minister of information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, were injured during an All Progressives Congress stakeholders meeting in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital yesterday.
According to the former chairman of the party in the state, Bashir Bolairnwa, five of his members sustained various degrees of injuries at the mayhem that disrupted the APC stakeholders parley.
Bolarinwa’s faction of the APC pledges loyalty to Lai Mohammed. The faction was ousted last January by the National Caretaker Committee of the APC and replaced with loyalists of the state’s governor, Abdulfatah
Shortly after the stakeholders meeting which was called by the Senator John Danboyi-led registration committee commenced, pandemonium broke out between the pro-Governor AbdulRaman Abdulrazaq group and pro-Lai Mohammed group.
The Nation newspaper quoted Bolairnwa as saying that: “Today, I led members of the Kwara APC Caretaker Committee to the residences of some of our members who were assaulted by hoodlums at Kwara State Banquet Hall the venue of the APC Stakeholders parley organised by the Sen. John Danboyi-led APC membership registration/revalidation committee.
“Among those visited include, Alhaji Dantala Yaro, the State Treasurer; Barr. Wahab Adeshina, a member of the board of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA); Mallam Lai Karatu, a Youths Leader; Alhaja Sidi Gidado, biological mother to our State Women Leader; Mr Salihu Elepo, Ilorin East LGA Secretary.
“These are known and respected stakeholders of the party in Kwara state. They were at the event on the formal invitations of the Registration Committee. Unfortunately, all these did not prevent the attacks on them.
“I extended the sympathies of the party to them all. I implored them to see their travails as sacrifices for democracy. I charged them to remain law abiding despite the unprovoked attacks.
“I am happy that they were all upbeat and reacting to treatment.”
