A fresh crisis has erupted within the Kwara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress following allegations by a female party member that she was assaulted by thugs allegedly loyal to a political ally of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Muibat Abdulkadir, a member of the party in Adewole ward of Ilorin West Local Government Area, claimed in a viral video that she was beaten at the weekend on the orders of Abdulmajeed Temidire, popularly known as ‘Aburo Gomina’, meaning the governor’s younger brother.
The incident, which occurred after a political meeting in the ward, left Muibat with a visible injury below her right eye.
She sustained a deep cut, with blood seen trickling down her face in the video circulating on social media.
Sources told Daily Trust that the assault was linked to a confrontation among rival factions within the party, which has become increasingly fragmented at the ward level. The division is reportedly driven by loyalty to different political leaders, despite the ward being the home base of the state governor.
According to Mrs Abdulkadir, “Anybody that is no longer in his camp, he will send thugs after such people and threaten us with such. During the ward meeting, he accused a leader of the party, Alhaji Olugbon of allegedly leaving the APC for ADC and the man denied. But as we were leaving, he (Abdulmajeed) stood outside and ordered his thugs to beat me”.
Reacting to the allegation, Temidire denied ordering the attack, saying he was not present at the meeting where the fracas broke out.
“I was not in the meeting at all that day. What happened was a fight among some women over political songs in support or against certain leaders within the party,” he told our correspondent.
He described the accusation as politically motivated and designed to tarnish his image, especially because of his strong ties to the governor.
“If not because of the politics involved, I would have sued for defamation. But as a leader who is concerned about the progress and well-being of the party, I chose to overlook it,” he said.
Temidire said he had consistently warned his supporters against violence, adding that the clash might have been the result of provocation and internal party tensions.
“What do I gain by beating her? I hate violence and I have told my supporters not to resort to it. I believe the whole thing was a misunderstanding between two women in rival camps. Unfortunately, one of the women involved is my supporter,” he explained.
He further alleged that Muibat belonged to a group opposed to his camp, adding that this was not the first time he had faced such accusations.
“I swear to God that I know nothing about this. She also knows I am innocent, but she is doing this for reasons best known to her,” he said.
