Adeleke bans NURTW activities in Osun after ally shot dead, orders probe

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has banned the activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the state following the killing of his political associate and Accord Party chief, Olalekan Oyeyemi, popularly known as Emir Ajagungbade, in Ile-Ife.

Mr Adeleke directed rival groups involved in the lingering leadership dispute to immediately vacate motor parks and garages across the state and ordered security agencies to arrest everyone allegedly involved in the killing.

The decision followed the shooting of Mr Oyeyemi on Sunday at Mayfair motor park in Ile-Ife, an incident that has heightened tension around the state’s motor parks and renewed concerns over violence linked to their control.

Reports said Mr Oyeyemi was shot dead during a dispute connected to the control of a motor park in Ile-Ife. The police, however, have not publicly established the motive for the attack or identified those responsible.

Confirming the incident, the Osun State Police Command said it had commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. The command said it deployed its officers to the scene to restore normalcy and secure the area.

It said its investigation would establish what happened and identify those responsible.

“The command is currently working to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the shooting,identify those responsible, and bring all persons found culpable to justice,” the police said in a statement.

Mr Oyeyemi, the deceased, was a member of the Accord Party and an associate of Mr Adeleke. He was also involved in the state’s transport sector and had served on a government-appointed transport committee.

Although some associates of the deceased have accused a rival faction of involvement in the killing, but the allegation has not been independently established and the police have not publicly linked any individual or group to the attack.

Adeleke orders new park management system

While directing the immediate removal of the warring groups from motor parks and garages across the state, Mr Adeleke said the government would introduce a new Park Management System under which the transport facilities would be managed.

“We are reintroducing the Park Management System. I will soon issue an executive order to give effect to the new management system to manage parks and garages across the state,” the governor said in a statement signed by his  spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed.

He also directed the Commissioner of Police to ensure the arrest of all persons involved in the killing.

“Law and order must be maintained. There will be no sacred cows as all culprits will be brought to book,” the governor added.

How the NURTW crisis escalated

The latest development comes amid an unresolved leadership dispute within the NURTW in Osun.

In July, the Osun State Government suspended all activities of the union in motor parks across the state after a violent confrontation linked to the dispute between rival factions.

The government, however, clarified that it had not dissolved the NURTW leadership and maintained that the executive led by Nurudeen Alowonle remained the recognised leadership of the union.

The government also accused a faction led by Kazeem Oyewale, popularly known as Asiri Eniba, of attempting to take control of motor parks and directed security agencies to remove the group from the parks.

But the national leadership of the NURTW rejected the state government’s suspension, arguing that the governor lacked the authority to halt the union’s operations.

The national union subsequently inaugurated a seven-member caretaker committee for Osun, further deepening the dispute between its national leadership and the state government.

The government rejected the caretaker committee, insisting that there was no leadership vacuum in the state chapter.

Disputes over the control of the motor parks also deepened following the re-election victory of Mr Adekele, with factions laying authority to the contrail of the garage. 

PREMIUM TIMES reported in August that two people were shot dead during a violent confrontation at the Naira and Kobo area of Ikire, Irewole Local Government Area of the state in an alleged push by a faction to take control of the garage following the re-election victory of Mr Adeleke.