A one-time Commissioner during the first tenure of Governor Kayode Fayemi, of Ekiti State, Mrs. Funke Owoseni, narrowly escaped death by suspected hired assassins.
The News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) reports that the gunmen allegedly invaded the Owoseni’s residence located at Ijesa-Isu, Ekiti state, in Ikole Local Government Area of the state late Thursday night.
But her husband, Mr Paul Owoseni, was not all that lucky, as he was reportedly attacked with a machete and his five fingers chopped off.
Mrs Owoseni, who also served as the former Caretaker Chairman of Ikole Local Government Area and later became the Women leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, confirmed the attack when she addressed newsmen on Friday.
She said the assailants invaded her home at about 9:00 p.m. on Thursday night and threw the compound into darkness by turning off the generating set.
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In what she described as a politically motivated assassination attempt, Mrs Owoseni recounted the family’s ordeal in the hands of their attackers.
“When the lights went off, we suspected that the generating set was still running outside and we asked some students living with us to go out and find out what was happening.
“Few minutes later, we heard them shouting for help; and my husband, who did not carry any light with him, rushed out to see what was happening because our first thought was that it was an electrocution.
“Shortly after, we started hearing screams of thief, thief, but my husband was already in their midst.
“But because I went with a flashlight, I was able to see them and I rushed back inside and hid.
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“They brought my husband inside and started asking, where is your wife? We are here for her and not you.
“When he refused to tell them anything, they started attacking him with a machete and chopped off his fingers; and fled when he passed out,” she said.
Mrs Owoseeni said the family immediately rushed her husband to the General hospital, Ikole, where he was referred to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH) for further medical attention.
“I see no reason why someone would want to kill me for raising my voice against injustice in the running of our party
“I had given the names of those I suspect to the police for investigation,” she said.
But when contacted, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Caleb Ikechukwu, said the case was yet to be reported to the command.
“I have not been briefed, but I know that the matter would have been under serious investigation since the victim said our men at Ikole Division had been informed.
“I will contact our men at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to know how far they have gone with the case,” Ikechukwu said. (NAN)