The 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Oladipupo Adebutu, has opened up about his prolonged absence from Nigeria, citing the challenging atmosphere during the elections as his primary motive.
In an interview with Punch, Adebutu explained that he left the country not to evade the law but to safeguard himself from the tumultuous election season. He described the situation as more of a war than a democratic process, expressing disbelief at the unprecedented level of anarchy and violence.
Adebutu also highlighted the proliferation of guns during the elections, emphasizing that the widespread availability of weapons posed a serious threat. Concerned for his safety, he made the decision to temporarily step away, fearing potential harm in the chaotic aftermath of the election.
According to him, “One won’t believe it was an election. One would rather think it was a war.
“The level of mayhem and anarchy was unbelievable. There were many guns in circulation. Guns found their way into the hands of these young people and after the elections were never retrieved. The killings have continued particularly in Sagamu. One can see the correlation, the availability of guns is proportional to disenfranchised voters, namely 46 polling units in Sagamu. Rationally, it became obvious that these guns were flowing all over the place. These misdirected young people were misbehaving killing one another, threatening market women, and harassing people everywhere.
“So, it did not need too much common sense for me to say to myself that I had to allow these winds to blow by because what would happen if these marauding people were to gun one down? There will certainly be a lot of crying and shouting and that will be the end of this mandate that they are trying to desperately abort.
“Rather than be murdered and allow the mandate to die a natural death, I will keep away until such a time when the matter is disposed of by the court. I decided to take a break because we are not dealing with people with conscience. We are not dealing with people that operate within the law.”