The Rapid Response Squad of the Ekiti State Police Command has arraigned the state chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party and former Speaker/Acting Governor, Tunji Odeyemi, alongside three other party officials before a Magistrate Court in Ado-Ekiti.
The arraignment was over a dispute bordering on the ownership of the party’s secretariat in Ajilosun, Ado-Ekiti.
Others arraigned alongside Odeyemi were the State Secretary, Kole Abiodun, former chairman Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, and Gani Salau, Personal Media Aide to the party’s governorship candidate, Dr Oluwole Oluyede.
The four were initially invited to the RRS office on Old Iyin Road, where a petition allegedly written by Barrister Falade and Ariyo Afolabi was read to them, accusing the officials of vandalism, conspiracy, theft and illegal invasion of a property purportedly owned by Ladi Adebutu, the PDP governorship candidate in Ogun State during the 2023 elections.
Odeyemi and Ogundipe countered the allegations, explaining that the PDP lawfully purchased and developed the land, and pledged to produce relevant title documents upon demand
After hours of administrative delays at the RRS office, the officials were slapped with stringent bail conditions, including a requirement for a Level 16 civil servant to stand surety for each principal officer.
They initially elected to remain in detention pending a court hearing, but were later released around 9 p.m. following interventions by prominent figures and their legal representatives.
Rather than being brought before the Commissioner of Police as anticipated, the four officials were subsequently moved to the Magistrate Court for formal arraignment.
Reacting, the PDP’s counsel in Ekiti State, Owoseeni Ajayi, condemned the arrests, describing the matter as strictly civil in nature and arguing that no legitimate complainant had established contrary ownership of the secretariat.
He insisted that any title dispute should be resolved before a civil court, not through criminal prosecution.
