By: Bola Ojuola, Akure.

There was pandemonium on Monday at the Ebenezer African Church Primary School, Akure, the Ondo State capital, as political thugs stormed the venue and disrupted the voting process for the selection of the All Progressives Congress’s candidate for the Ondo Central Senatorial ticket.

In the midst of the confusion, delegates, party members, as well as journalists, scampered for safety as thugs invaded the venue with lethal weapons.

The armed youths brazenly fired gunshots into the air, creating panic among school pupils and teachers who were holding classes.

The pupils were hurriedly evacuated from the scene as parents returned to pick up their children, fearing they might be hurt in the melee.

Some people were seen scaling fences to force their escape as the situation got messier.

Incidentally, the venue is the polling unit of the incumbent senator, Adeniyi Adegbomire.

The ticket is being contested by other aspirants, such as former Ondo State Secretary to the state Government, Taiwo Fasoranti, and a retired military officer and now a legal practitioner, Olumuyiwa Adu.

Mr Adegbomire described the primary exercise as “a complete charade” orchestrated deliberately to stop his supporters from voting at the unit.

According to him, the troublemakers knew he was leading at the polls and sought to disrupt the process.

“The attackers shot at my vehicle, leaving visible marks,” he said.

He said similar incidents were recorded in other voting units across the senatorial district, with political thugs openly intimidating voters at the units and preventing them from voting during the exercise.

“The same thing happened last week, where voters were intimidated during the House of Representatives primaries,” he lamented.

“Now we are witnessing this again in the Senate. So clearly, it is a pattern, and something has to be done about it.”

Mr Adu, on his part, also dismissed the exercise as a sham, in that armed youths were openly threatening delegates during the exercise.

He said he restrained his supporters from retaliating to avoid violence.

Mr Adu further noted that no political ambition was worth bloodshed, warning that recurring violence during APC primaries in the state could deepen internal divisions in the party and negatively affect its future electoral fortunes if not checked.

Officials have, however, denied any crisis during the exercise, but could not deny the violent disruption during the results of the House of Representatives primaries in Akure when faced with inquiries from the media.

There are indications that the results of the senatorial primaries would be collated and announced in Abuja as directed by the party’s leadership.