Three shot dead as violence erupts in Ekiti bye-election

 

All hell broke loose at Omuo Ekiti on Saturday midway into the bye election to fill the vacancy in the Ekiti East Constituency 1 of the Ekiti State House of Assembly.

Three persons, including a policewoman, were shot dead by suspected thugs in the orgy of violence while six others were injured.

Senator Biodun Olujimi (Ekiti South) narrowly escaped being caught in the hail of bullets. She had just voted when the violence began.

Among the injured were a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, an official of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and two policemen.

The injured are now in the hospital receiving treatment.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) immediately suspended further voting.

The police confirmed the death of the policewoman but did not disclose her identity.

Killed with her were 50-year old Bola Adebisi and 35-year old Tunde Ogunleye.

Apart from the shooting incident, there were also reports of ballot box snatching in some units.

The two main parties in the state, All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) launched into a war of words over the shooting.

Senator Olujimi said the election started peacefully before thugs, allegedly sponsored by the APC, and compromised police officers disrupted the voting process.

The lawmaker said she narrowly escaped being shot when the thugs invaded her polling unit 007 at Ward 7.

She said she was ferried out of the polling unit by party supporters.

She said: “the leaders of APC came to the polling unit, in fact we greeted them warmly. After they left, some APC thugs who stayed behind pulled out guns and started shooting sporadically.

“This is the first time we would witness this. They picked the ballot box and ran away.

“A man died as he was trying to escape the scene. The policewoman guarding the ballot box was also shot in the head. The corps member and the Presiding Officer at the unit were hit by bullets.

“In totality, eight people were shot. Some died and five are battling with their lives in the hospital, receiving treatments.”

She accused APC leaders of masterminding the attack.

A member of the House of Representatives and native of the town, Hon. Femi Bamisile, described the shooting as appalling and unbelievable, saying no election is worth the blood of any Nigerian.

His words: “In any election where people are being lost, that is no longer democracy.

“APC was fully prepared for this election and canvassed for votes and we never wanted to kill anybody.

“I really don’t understand how it happened. I didn’t want to believe that it was our party.

“The election started peacefully. What could have caused the shooting and killing?”

Killers won’t go scot free, says Fayemi

Governor Kayode Fayemi in a statement through his Chief Press Secretary, Yinka Oyebode, has pledged that the brains behind the killings will not go scot-free.

He asked the police to fish out any one involved in the violence irrespective of his political affiliation.

The governor commiserated with the bereaved families and the injured.