There was panic in Osogbo, capital of Osun State on Tuesday after some commercial drivers revolted against the chairman of the Osun State Park Management System, Wakili Nurudeen and stabbed him for allegedly extorting them.
The irate commercial drivers, including some executive officers of the park management system, allegedly ambushed Nurudeen at Oke-Baale area of Osogbo and inflicted injuries on the chairman’s neck and hand.
The development led to confrontation between the supporters of Nurudeen, popularly known as Alowonle and the factional members of the park management system.
There was pandemonium at the Park Management System Secretariat, major parks in Osogbo including Oke-Baale, Ilesa Garage, Sadiat and Oke-Ayepe as gunshots rented the air, leading to residents running helter-skelter.
Earlier before the attack, the disgruntled drivers had staged a peaceful protest around Olaiya area of Osogbo, demanding the removal of Nurudeen as Park Management chairman for allegedly using Adeleke’s name to extort them of over N1.6 million and embezzling the money.
The protesters further accused him of extortion, high-handedness and threatening members who cared to opposite his conducts.
Speaking during the demonstration, a former Secretary of the National Union of Road Transport Workers who identified himself as “SA to Park Management Chairman”, Morounkade Akinade said, “When the governor (Ademola Adeleke) wanted to become the Asiwaju of Ede Land, he (Nurudeen) said each of the 8 groups in Osun State should bring N150,000 which amounted to N1.2 million.
“So, he is very fond of collecting money with the name of Adeleke’s family. If anyone challenged him, he will threaten such person. So, we decided that we don’t want him again, he is not capable, he doesn’t have experience and when we tried to correct him, he refused blatantly.
“The government gave us ticket, he refused to remit money to them. We opposed him then, but he threatened to kill us. He even beat our members and we have sent the pictures to the DSS for investigation.
“We don’t want him again as our state chairman, the members are from Ife, Modakeke, Sekona, Ilesa, Ila, Ode-Omu, Gbongan and Oke-Ila, they are all here at our state secretariat. We are at the secretariat now and they are threatening us with gun. They said they will kill us.”
Meanwhile, after the attack, security operatives including the Police, DSS, Amotekun and local vigilantes were deployed to restore order to the affected areas.
Nurudeen, who was hospitalized after his attack, was drenched in his blood.
Other members of the transport union were reportedly injured.
He denied the allegations during an interview with journalists, saying the irate Park members had hated him since NURTW was abolished in the state and replaced with Osun Park Management System.
On how he was allegedly attacked and injured, Nurudeen stated, “I saw that some hoodlums gathered and blocked me on the road, two of them were our former members. They attacked and stabbed me. They shot at my car and my car is still at the place they damaged it. The Police have seen the evidence too.
“It is not true that I am not approachable to members. I am not a lion. It is only a lion that would be leading and no one would dare to advise him. They are the enemies of government. They are not pleased with the park management system that government formed. I am not the one they are against, they are against government because they are members of the national union. Government has said that throughout Osun State, it is Park Management System that it formed, of which I am the leader. The other side that wanted to upstage the government of Adeleke are the ones attacking me. Arogundade Wasiu, (aka Aroso), is one of them. Also, Moronkade Jelili is also one of them and Moshood Olawale, (aka Lion), Olamilekan Emir Ajagungbade and others.
“It is not true that when Governor wanted to be honoured with Asiwaju Ede title, I collected money from all branches but did not deliver the money. The branch chairmen are here and they can say if I collected money from them. It is the theft they are commiting of which we stopped them for, that made them to want to create a parallel authority against the government.
“It is also lies that I used Yeye Dupe Sani’s name to collect money from members. Yeye Dupe is not a transporter. If we want to collect any money, it is not even right for me to say I want to collect any money. It is not possible. State officers are there that can be questioned on this. Out of over 10,000 members, five people coming out to assemble thugs to attack should not be condoned.”