Sowore: arresting 11 people is not enough, the real planners are still free

Omoyele Sowore, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), has brushed aside the arrest of 11 people over the attack on him and his team in Ado-Ekiti, saying those who planned it have not been caught.

The Ekiti State Police Command said its Rapid Response Squad picked up the suspects in the Atikankan area of the city on the night of the 30 October attack at a restaurant in Dalimore. Police spokesman Abutu Sunday said walkie-talkies, 13 phones, ATM cards, passports and suspected drugs were recovered, and that investigations were continuing.

In a statement on Wednesday, Sowore again rejected the police's first description of the incident as a fight, insisting it was an organised attack, and disputed claims that officers rescued him.

He claimed a mobile phone taken from a member of his team during the attack was later tracked to the Ekiti Governor's Lodge and that CCTV equipment was taken from the scene. He named a dozen people he wants investigated, among them Governor Biodun Oyebanji, the governor's chief security officer and Police Commissioner Falade Michael, and called for the commissioner to step aside while the case is examined.

Sowore also asked for an independent investigation team, the release of the restaurant's CCTV footage, and details of the charges against the 11 suspects. These are his allegations and have not been proven. No response from the state government or the police to his latest claims had been reported at the time of publishing.