TheCable journalist Samuel Adebanjo is assaulted by suspected APC loyalists, who seize his camera, gimbal and microphone at an NDC meeting.
Samuel Adebanjo, a multimedia journalist with TheCable, was attacked by suspected loyalists of the All Progressives Congress (APC) during a Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) town hall meeting in Lagos on Thursday.
The incident occurred at the Classique Event Centre in the Oregun area of the state, where the NDC was holding a town hall meeting.
At about 11am, as NDC supporters arrived at the venue ahead of the meeting, several suspected thugs reportedly stormed the premises and attacked attendees.
With no security operatives initially present to contain the situation, NDC supporters and journalists fled for safety. Some rushed into the hall, while others sought shelter in different locations.
Adebanjo, who attempted to hide behind a parked car, was reportedly confronted by six attackers who assaulted him with punches, slaps and kicks.
During the attack, one of the assailants struck his wrist with an axe. His wristwatch reportedly took the impact, preventing the weapon from making contact with his skin.
The attackers subsequently seized his camera, gimbal and microphone, equipment worth millions of naira, before fleeing the scene.
Recounting his experience, Adebanjo said he was initially positioned near the entrance to capture the arrival of NDC supporters.
“I was inside the compound but very close to the gate. The NDC supporters were arriving at the time, so I wanted to capture their arrival,” Adebanjo said.
“The moment the gate of the event centre was opened for the buses conveying NDC supporters, the thugs rushed in.
“I wanted to run towards the hall, but I saw the thugs rushing there, so I decided to hide at the back of a car.
“It was while I was there that they confronted me and demanded that I surrender my camera.
“I tried to resist, so they started attacking me. I eventually yielded and surrendered the devices when one of them kept shouting, ‘leave the camera; do you want them to kill you?’”
Meanwhile, NDC supporters who prevented the attackers from gaining access to the hall later moved to the road to confront them.
The confrontation disrupted traffic as both sides exchanged projectiles, with the suspected thugs throwing bottles and NDC supporters responding by hurling objects from a distance.
Police operatives arrived in batches about an hour after the violence began and fired tear gas canisters to disperse the crowd and restore order.
However, senior security operatives who spoke to TheCable alleged that the NDC had not notified the police and other security agencies about the event, accounting for the initial absence of security personnel.
TheCable said it had contacted Olushile Akinyemi, the NDC spokesperson in Lagos, to clarify the level of communication between the party and security agencies before the town hall meeting.