One dies as protest turns bloody in Ondo

The protest in Ondo State, over the weekend, took a bloody dimension as a secondary school student was said to have been hit by the tear gas canister, released by the police in dispersing the rioters in Ondo town, near Ife garage.

This came as opposition political parties in the state, weekend, called for calm and caution over the protests.

The name of the pupil has not been identified as at the time of filling this report. But our correspondent gathered that the student of St Joseph College was on his way to the school on Friday when he was hit by the canister. Moreso, Akure, the Ondo State capital, was not left out, as rioters again trooped to the streets, protesting the decision of INEC.

The Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, emerge from his Palace, over the weekend, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the Ondo PDP crisis arising from substitution of Eyitayo Jegede with Jimoh Ibrahim as governorship candidate by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) according to court orders. Aladetoyinbo made the appeal while addressing aggrieved PDP members and the supporters, who again came out in their thousands at his Palace, in Akure.

He also enjoined INEC to be not be partisan. “The judiciary should also intervene and make sure that all parties get justice because we don’t want any injustice in Ondo State,” he said. 

Speaking on behalf of the protesters, PDP Chairman in the state, Engr Clement Faboyede,  called on the president to prevail on INEC to look into the issue. “We don’t want Ondo State to be on fire because our state is peaceful.

Some cabals in All Progressive Congress (APC) are using Jimoh Ibrahim against the candidacy of Jegede, Jimoh is not a PDP member but rather a card carrying member of Accord party,” he said.

Vanguard