Loyalists of the National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, have raised the alarm over an alleged plot to eliminate him.
The loyalists, who spoke under the Aregbesola-endorsed Omoluabi Progressives, said the plotters had begun what they called “the anatomy of assassination politics” against the former Minister of Interior.
“In recent weeks, we have witnessed a disturbing escalation of incendiary remarks, veiled threats, and direct state-backed actions targeting his person.
“Taken together, these developments raise genuine fears that a sinister agenda is being orchestrated to silence him permanently under the guise of politics,” they alleged in a statement signed by the spokesperson and Organising Secretary of the group, Oluwaseun Abosede.
Aregbesola has come under criticism for accepting to be part of the ADC-led opposition coalition against President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress.
Since his emergence as the secretary of the ADC, many pro-Tinubu politicians and others who believed Aregbesola shouldn’t be part of the people plotting against the President have tagged the former governor of Osun State a betrayer.
Aregbesola was a staunch loyalist of the President until they fell out in 2022 following an internal crisis in the Osun APC and other issues.
Abosede, in the statement made available to newsmen on Sunday, he revealed that there was a coordinated attempt to eliminate Aregbesola because of his political independence.
He referenced various verbal attacks on the ADC scribe and the recent prevention of the former minister from attending a campaign rally in Ogun State as pointers to what he called a “state-backed plot.”
He said, “On July 23, 2025, Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Igboho, declared at a rally in Yoruba, ‘Ile o mú won’ (the land will consume them), a statement widely understood as a call for violence against Aregbesola.
“This was followed on August 2, 2025, by a veiled threat circulated on social media through the amplification of a post by journalist, Mayor Akinpelu, endorsed by Presidential spokesman, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, which suggested that Aregbesola would face dire consequences for his political independence.
“He wrote in that infamous article inter alia, ‘no man could repay good with evil and get away with it.’
“The rhetoric intensified on August 14, 2025, when journalist Gbonka Ebiri openly called for Aregbesola to face the ‘wrath of Yorubaland’ and branded him a ‘sell-out’ who must be ‘made an example of.’ Such incitement to violence has no place in a civilised democracy.”
Abosede said the verbal attacks had escalated into physical repression, saying any plot to harm Aregbesola would be resisted.
He added, “On the same day, August 14, police operatives with an Armoured Personnel Carrier disrupted the African Democratic Congress rally in Sagamu, Ogun State, where Aregbesola was scheduled to lead the campaign for the House of Representatives bye-election candidate, Hon. Solomon Oluwaseyi Osho.
“The venue was vandalised, equipment seized, and Aregbesola himself was obstructed from accessing the event. The attempt by the police to downplay this incident only deepens public suspicion.
“It is becoming increasingly clear that this pattern of coordinated attacks, from inflammatory rhetoric to physical obstruction, represents nothing less than what analysts have described as ‘the anatomy of assassination politics.’”
He condemned the threats, saying the Yoruba nation must never allow intimidation and violence to replace healthy political contest.
Abosede stated that Aregbesola committed no offence in choosing his independent political path, adding that his constitutional and democratic rights should be respected.
“Those behind these plots must desist immediately. The safety, dignity, and political rights of Yoruba leaders must not be sacrificed on the altar of opportunism.
“We call on well-meaning Nigerians to take note of the rhetoric, and urge the relevant security agencies to ensure that democracy is not desecrated by threats, intimidation, and violence,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Osun State Police spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, told our correspondent that the command was not aware of any planned attack on the ex-minister.
He said, “To the best of my knowledge, we have not gotten any report about that. I will confirm if there is anything like that.”