Few hours after he was attacked by the assailants, Mr Olateju Adunni, the Personal Assistant to the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has narrated how he survived the attempt on his life.
According to Adunni, the assailants, who came in an 18-seater bus led by two armed-to-tooth policemen shot and unleashed machete cut on him at a restaurant at Oroki Estate, Osogbo, State of Osun around 9:30pm.
Adunni said: “I was attending a get-together to celebrate the birthday of Honourable Taofeek Badmus, the lawmaker representing Osogbo State Constituency. Badmus invited me, Hon Festus Komolafe, a.k.a BFK, Honourable Babatunde Desmond Ojo from Oriade State Constituency were there too. We dined and wined for hours.
“I stepped out of the restaurant to attend to a woman who was discussing POS business with me. While talking with the woman, I saw some thugs alighting from an 18-seater bus. I retreated to the restaurant to inform my people there.
“The thugs came in and shouted ‘TejuNiyen, TejuNiyen’. They started descending on me. Hon Taofeek Badmus was punched and he managed to escape instantly. While the hoodlums were attacking me, my friends, Kehinde Adedeji (Aresa), Wale Omolola, Rasheed Ropo and my Personal Assistant, Dare Ogundotun attempted to rescue me from them.
“The attention of the hoodlums shifted to my people and they started attacking them. Alhaji Simple, an elder brother to Senator AjibolaBasiru who is representing Osun Central Senatorial District was also attacked in the process. He was cut with cutlass on the head.
“Also, Honourable BFK was injured by the thugs when he attempted to rescue my friend, Wale Omolola. I managed to escape from the restaurant and was running towards Jerry Paul filling station. The hoodlums were running after me. They shot at me several times. They were shouting ‘don’t kill him here, let us catch him and take him to another place’.
I heard my PA, Dare screaming. I thought he had been severely injured. I had to navigate my way back to the restaurant to rescue him because I thought I had diverted the attention of the thugs. Unfortunately, I ran into their midst. They held me and started unleashing machete cut on him. Luckily for me, a bouncer at the restaurant punched two of the hoodlums holding me and some of them went for him. That was how I was able to escape from them.
“Joseph Akanbi, a Technical Adviser to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hon Timothy Owoeye was with us and he was also attacked. I learnt he was taken to LAUTECH alongside Alhaji Simple. I was treated at Spring Hospital.
“I was at the programme based on invitation. I am surprise that Hon Badmus could say he was not attacked, when BFK, his colleague was also injured. It is unfortunate.”