Ile-Ife blast: Rep calls for calm, investigation

By ZIKA BOBBY

A House of Representatives member representing Ife Federal Constituency,  Rotimi Makinde, has said the explosion that rocked Ile-Ife in Osun State in the early hours of Tuesday was the handiwork of desperate politicians, who are bent on throwing the city and the state into chaos for their personal interests.
Residents of Ile-Ife woke up on Tuesday morning in shock following the explosion of devices reportedly planted in two strategic locations at Agbedegbede area of the town.
Though no life was lost in the explosion, property worth millions of naira were destroyed in the blast.
Makinde, who is of the All Progressives Congress (APC), noted in a statement signed by him, that the attack had once again, brought to the fore, the characters of those aiming to take over the reins of power from the incumbent Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, and urged residents to be calm and note strange faces in their neighbourhood.
He said: “In an unprecedented manner, Ile-Ife, the cradle of Yoruba race, witnessed bomb blast last Tuesday and it is a very bad primacy for the city which prides itself as the origin of Yorubaland. This attack left one to wonder if this is the kind of origin we are talking about, as Ile-Ife now becomes the first Yorubaland to experience bombing.”  It is so sad.
“While I appeal for calm among our people, it behooves us to be firm in our resolve to unite against the enemies of our common heritage posing as an alternative to the present populist government we are enjoying in the state of Osun, ensuring that we stay vigilant and querying strange faces in our neigbourhood.”
Appealing to security personnel in the state to unravel the sad incident, Makinde also alleged that a governorship candidate in the state has been going around communities with masked men, adding that the development had thrown residents into panic. He urged the state police command to intervene.