Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State verbally attacked fiery Muslim preacher, Sheikh Muhydeen Ajani Bello, at a prayer session in Ado-Ekiti.
The cleric had courted the governor’s venom by urging him to show more decorum in his public utterances.
The altercation took place at the weekend during a prayer conference and award ceremony organised by the Southwest branch of the Ansar-ud-Deen Muslim Society of Nigeria.
The Governor was in attendance at the event, which had as highlights prayers for the country and the honouring of deserving Muslims with awards, when the outspoken preacher offered his advice.
Those at the event said the preacher told Fayose that as the number one citizen of the state, he needs to be more cautious in his public utterances.
The unsolicited advice apparently did not sit well with the governor, they said, as he responded with abusive words at the preacher, who attempted to reply him but was restrained by some of the elders in attendance. His microphone was disabled.
The elders also appealed to the governor to leave the venue, having already performed his role, but he bluntly refused, an action that led to a three-hour disruption of the programme.
The governor subsequently left the event, which ended on Monday morning. Attempts to interview the cleric, who was present until Sunday, proved abortive.
Mr. Lere Olayinka, Special Assistant to Fayose on New Media, expressed the view that the cleric deserved the insults the governor drenched him in.
