OSUN COMMISSIONER DENIES ORDERING BRUTALITY ON JOURNALIST.
Osun State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Prince Adebayo Adeleke has described as a lie of the century, the report that he ordered the beating of a journalist with Daily Post, one Sikiru Obarayese.
In his reaction to the allegation, Adeleke said, the report on the matter were based on hearsay that is not closed to the truth, and seems to have been designed to malign the enforcement process.
According to him, what happened was the enforcement of the guidelines against the spread of Covid 19, which involved arresting and trial of violators before the court.
When found guilty, according to the commissioner they would only be made to do a community service work with a view to ensuring that they comply and prevent community transmission of Covid-19 in the interest of all citizens.
He said, “Truly I led the enforcement, but there is nowhere that I know of where anybody was beaten up during the enforcement of the guideline. May be the guy making the allegation believe that his story will not sell the issues of enforcement is not brought in
“The reporter who was making the allegation knew that he was not the only journalist at the scene, other journalists from other media houses were there. The question is why only him? It is even a thing of joy that we have journalists on ground covering the activities because we want the message to go far.
“We are not doing anything illegal, why are we going to prevent journalists from covering it. Therefore, whoever believe his allegation can believe anything under the sun.
“To prove that he was actually telling lies, at the time he claimed he was being treated at the hospital, there was an information that he was sighted at a party behind Bovas filling station in Osogbo in a joyous mood with his friends and others.
“The government of Osun and any of its officials, including myself would never trample on the right of any citizens, journalist or not, because we are law abiding.
“We are therefore calling on the people to comply with the Covid-19 preventive guideline, as a way of supporting government in the fight against the spread of the virus”, Adeleke stressed.
Adeleke added that the report by some media houses that he could not be reached on his mobile phone was another lie from those who reported the matter, saying, “I can count more than six journalists who called me for clarification and I told them what transpired.
“To report that I could not be reached was another lie from the pit of hell”, he added.
