Like the popular play, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, the centre could not hold in Kisi, Irepo Local Government Area of Oyo State on Saturday, as parallel congresses were held in the council, on Saturday.
Amid news of peaceful conduct of the process across Oyo State, trouble broke out in the Deputy Governor’s council.
Sources informed that party faithful loyal to a former Irepo Local Government chairman, Alhaji J.S. Amodu, a popular PDP chieftain, Alhaji Omupo and another former chairman of the council, Alhaji Santana were maltreated by the Deputy Governor’s men led by the Commissioner for Establishment, Prof. Salihu Adelabu and the Irepo Local Government chairman, Alhaji T.T. Olayiwola.
It was also reliably gathered that the two sides clashed at Lagbulu Grammar School and later at Atipa Area of Kisi, as the Deputy Governor’s loyalists and the other side allegedly engaged in a heated argument and fisticuffs.
Following this failure to ensure inclusiveness as allegedly directed by the Oyo State PDP Secretariat, however, it was gathered that Alhaji Amodu and Alhaji Omupo’s people embarked on a parallel congress.
Addressing the party faithful after the exercise, Alhaji J.S. Amodu accused the other side of not wanting to accommodate loyal party members who had been in the PDP before them.
He added that he and his people worked for the party but the Deputy Governor’s people had vowed to ensure that they do not get anything for their efforts and they were bent on taking over the entire structure of the party despite the fact that they cannot win elections alone.