Protesting youths seeking the removal of the Ondo State deputy governor, Alhaji Alli Olanusi, escaped being shot on Monday, as security personnel attached to the deputy governor shot sporadically into the air to disperse the protesters.

The protesters, in their hundreds, took to the street in the early hours of Monday, demanding the resignation of Olanisi, saying he was no longer needed in the office.

The deputy governor’s convoy ran into the protesting youths while Olanusi and his aides who were coming from his country home, Supare Akoko after the last Saturday’s election.

Olanusi had defected from the  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) before the presidential election held on March 28.

The youth, who were seen carrying several placards with different inscriptions like ‘Ali Must go’, ‘No place for Olanusi in Government House’ ‘Olanusi is a traitor’ and ‘Jasper Ali must resign’, tried to prevent the convoy of the deputy governor from getting into the Government House when the security personnel opened fire to disperse them.

It was gathered that the security personnel attached to the convoy had to shoot sporadically into the air to scare away the protesters before they could pass through the road leading to the Government House.

The Nigerian Tribune also learnt that some of the protesters were throwing stones, water sachets and eggs at the convoy, as the security operatives were shooting and one of the vehicles in the convoy was hit by the stones thrown by the protesters.

Also, it was gathered that some residents of the town who heard the gunshots ran for safety, thinking it was armed robbery attack, as the shooting lasted for a very long period, with some of the protesting youths were injured during the process. 

Some members of the public who thought it was a robbery attack, it was gathered, called the military, whose men cordoned off the banking area.

Olanusi, who spoke with newsmen at the Government House accused the governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko of being behind the attack, alleging the governor of hiring  suspected political thugs to harass him on his way to his official residence.

 “It is very surprising and rude shock that a sitting governor, after conducting election, is still going round with thugs to attack me in the State House.

“You can see things yourself at the roundabout, the thugs he hired there and at the gate there; if I had not come with my convoy, they would have attacked me.

“I will call on the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of this zone  and the Inspector General of Police to protect me more for God’s sake.

“They should provide me with more mobile policemen to guide me. I am ready to resume duty as elected deputy governor of Ondo State.

“Nobody has told me to resign. If they are talking about impeachment, they should go about it in a lawful way, not that they should use thugs to attack an elected deputy governor.

“They should realise that as Mimiko was elected as governor, I, Alli Olanusi was equally elected. He cannot be chasing me with thugs.”

Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Eni Akinsola, denied the allegation that political thugs were used to harass the deputy governor and  some people were trying to reverse the trend of peace the state had been enjoying for the past six years.

According to him, aides in Olanusi’s convoy came to the town shooting sporadically in the air and it was the aggrieved residents who had never witnessed such scene in the past years that protested against the deputy governor.

Akinsola said people should accept democracy as normal way of life, accept when their calculation go wrong and learn how to accept defeat honourably.

The protesting youths, however, said they were not sponsored to take to the street, but took the action to save the state from underdevelopment, saying the deputy governor was no longer active.

Speaking on behalf of  the youth, Afolayan Simeon said a seven-day ultimatum was given to Olanusi to voluntarily resign or face impeachment.

He said: “We don’t want a dormant deputy governor, we want active and young person, who can assist the governor to move  the state forward and we are giving the deputy governor seven days to resign or face the music; this state must continue to develop.”