A pre-congress stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State erupted into violence on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
Suspected thugs stormed the party secretariat in Akure, resulting in numerous injuries and the physical assault of the state chairman and a high-ranking commissioner.
The chaos unfolded just one day before the nationwide ward congress was set to take place across 203 wards.
Eyewitness Yetunde Adeyanju described a terrifying scene where attackers, armed with dangerous weapons, claimed allegiance to the state governor.
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She reported them shouting, “We don’t want congress in Ondo State. The governor is in charge. The governor is the leader of the state, and the governor is in charge.”
According to Adeyanju, the invaders issued death threats, warning that “Nobody can query the authority of the governor, and anybody who wants to talk about congress in Ondo State will be assassinated. If you talk about congress in Ondo State, you will be assassinated.”
The violence left several prominent leaders wounded, including the state chairman, Mr. Ade Adetimehin; a commissioner on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) board, Mr. Otito Atikase; and former Commissioner for Sports, Mr. Saka Yusuf-Ogunleye. Chairman Adetimehin, who was hospitalized after the incident, alleged that the thugs were hired specifically to sabotage the gathering.
He recounted the attack, stating, “Thirty minutes later, the place was invaded by thugs, with cutlasses and other dangerous weapons. They beat all leaders and members, except those who are for them.”
He further detailed his own ordeal, saying, “They beat me and dragged me on the floor; they took away my two phones, money, and wristwatch.”
In response, the Commissioner for Information, Mr. Idowu Ajanaku, dismissed any link between the governor and the violence, calling the accusations “unfounded, false and misleading.”
Ajanaku’s official statement maintained that “The governor was neither aware of nor connected to the said meeting and could not have sanctioned any act of thuggery. His leadership reflects a strong aversion to violence and political intimidation in any form.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Abayomi Jimoh, confirmed the police intervention, noting that “The police command received a distress call, and we immediately swung into action, deploying operatives to the APC state secretariat.”
He assured the public that “Efforts of these operatives restored calmness to the area,” and confirmed that tactical teams have been deployed while investigations continue.
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