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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
The suspended chairman of Ido Local Government Area of Oyo State, Hon. Sheriff Adeojo, has allegedly assaulted a lawyer, Barr. Tolu Fowode, at 530 lounge, in Oluyole, Ibadan.
According to reliable sources, the embattled Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member and one of the sons of elder statesman, Chief Yekini Adeojo, attacked Fowode unprovoked and off a discussion that seemed harmless.
“We were just having a conversation in the VIP area, when this guy just came over to Barr. Tolu, acting pretty violent. Before we knew it, he got physical and although shocked, we still tried to hold him to no avail,” a witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
A female witness also expressed disappointment at Adeojo’s conduct despite his supposedly eminent background.
“This guy was launching and landing several blows on Barrister Fowode, we were able to restrain him at a point but he reached for a bottle. Even though he seemed a bit drunk, it still does not excuse his behaviour at all, at least he was sober enough to pick his victim. I’m just disappointed please,” she said.
A staff of the 530 lounge, Seyi Adewale, in a short statement expressed regret at the action of “a customer we later identified as Mr. Sheriff Adeojo.”
“Mr Adeojo attacked another patron, Barr. Tolu Fowode, on Thursday, September 22nd, 2022. Although, we immediately swung into action to stop him before he inflicts further damage.
“While this incident is regretted, we apologize to Barrister Fowode and we assure all our customers of their safety when they come to our lounge,” he added.
Fowode, who is a ranking member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Oyo State, is said to be recuperating at home.
There were reports that leaders of the PDP in the state are worried that the embattled Adeojo is in the news for the wrong reasons again.
Recall that members of the legislative arm of Ido Local Government had in August suspended Adeojo indefinitely due to what they termed as “gross lack of accountability and poor infrastructure management across the 10 wards that made up the local government area.”
As of the time of filing this report, Adeojo could not be reached for comment.