Suspected thugs disrupt PVC collection in Osun

There was pandemonium in the ancient town of Ilesa, Osun State, yesterday, when some suspected political thugs stormed some wards and registration centres where registered voters were collecting their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and disrupted the exercise.

The Guardian gathered that while the exercise was ongoing in some wards at Ilesa West Local Council, some armed hoodlums, stormed the collection centres simultaneously and terrorised the participants.

An eyewitness said that amid resounding gunshots, officials of the electoral body and registrants scampered for safety.

“Because many of our members decided to come out en-masse to collect their PVCs, the All Progressives Congress (APC) sent their thugs to attack us. They know we are many in this area, so, they were shooting and scared us away,” a PDP member in the area said on the condition of anonymity.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Olabisi Atanda, confirmed the disruption of the PVC collection exercise, saying that the Corps and the Nigeria Police were on the trail of the hoodlums.

HOWEVER, Director of Media and Publicity of the APC in the state, Kunle Oyatomi, said he was not aware of the incident.