The African Democratic Congress in Ekiti State and the state police command are at loggerheads over the arrest and detention of the party’s House of Assembly candidate for Ekiti Constituency 1, Ayodele Babatola, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
While the ADC alleged political intimidation and demanded the immediate release of its candidate, the police insisted the arrest followed a rape complaint filed at the Okeila Divisional Headquarters in Ado Ekiti, stressing that due process was being followed.
The ADC, speaking through the state Publicity Secretary, Gboyega Aribisogan, at a press briefing in Ado Ekiti, said the arrest was an attempt to silence the opposition in the state.
Some placard-carrying ADC members in the state also protested, demanding the release of the candidate.
Inscriptions on their placards included ‘Ekiti ADC demands freedom’, ‘Free Ayo, Free Babatola’, and ‘He is not a rapist’.
