The atmosphere was tense in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on Thursday over the health status of a former Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi.
It was gathered in the early hour of the day that the condition of the former governor had deteriorated.
Ajimobi, the newly appointed acting chairman of the All Progressives Congress, has been receiving treatment for suspected COVID-19 ailment in a Lagos hospital for close to two weeks.
By evening on Thursday, there were apprehensions within the APC family in Oyo State as rumour of his death filtered in.
Principal officers within the party made frantic efforts to ascertain Ajimobi’s status.
One of his former aides, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was confusion.
He said, “We are making calls within and outside the state to confirm the truth. You know it is difficult to rely on online reports saying that the former governor was dead. Yes, he is very sick, but he is already getting well.
However, for another former aide of the former governor, Bolaji Tunji, the rumour was birthed by the enemies of progress.
The angry aide said, “That story is not true please. My attention has been drawn to the rumour circulating on the social media about my principal. Kindly disregard. We, however, continue to pray for him. Thank you all for the show of concern.”
The APC Chairman in the state Chief Akin Oke, was reported to have said the rumour was a rude shock orchestrated “from the pit of hell.”
Some key members of the party switched off their mobile telephones as journalists could not reach them on Thursday.
At the Oluyole Estate residence of the governor, activities were normal in the area, as well as at the residence of the Ajimobis as of the time of filing this report.
However, a message purportedly emanating from Ajimobi’s Twitter handle at 9:21 pm, on Thursday, read, “I am not dead. Stop this rumour mongering. Ajimobi is very much alive. The Constituted Authority is here for a lot more time. I will beat corona and be back on my feet soon.”
Ajimobi’s daughter-in-law, Fatima Ganduje-Ajimobi, also dismissed the rumour.
She tweeted, “Thank you for all the messages, but our father is still alive, alhamdulillah. When it is our time we will all die; so wait first.”
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