Peter Obi and John Odigie-Oyegun escaped unhurt after gunmen attacked an ADC facility and Oyegun’s residence in Benin City, leaving several people injured and property damaged.
Tension gripped Benin City, Edo State, yesterday as 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, former Edo State governor John Odigie-Oyegun, and other leaders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) escaped attacks by gunmen. The incident occurred minutes after ADC leaders received former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and LP’s Edo 2024 governorship candidate, Olumide Akpata, into the party at its secretariat on Ogbelaka Street, Off Sokponba Road. Eyewitnesses said the attackers, who arrived in an unmarked Sienna bus and on a motorcycle, fired gunshots and vandalised party property, leaving some members injured.
The assailants later moved to Odigie-Oyegun’s residence on Reservation Road, where more gunshots were heard and vehicles parked near the gate were riddled with bullets. In a video circulated online, Obi said: “This is a former governor of the state (Odigie-Oyegun). You can see what happened in front of his house where hoodlums came, shooting. Look at the gate, see the bullet holes at the gate, several cars damaged. That is where our democracy has reached.” Earlier, he had declared: “It is time to speak up. It is time those in government act. They are not going to be there forever. What they allowed to happen in the country today will take its revenge on all of us and the country.”
National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Yunusa Tanko, alleged that the attackers trailed the leaders from the secretariat, stating: “The leadership of the ADC is under siege and attack in Benin, Edo State. Armed individuals followed us from the ADC Secretariat to the residence of John Odigie-Oyegun and shot at the gate, destroying several vehicles.” Speaking to journalists, Odigie-Oyegun said: “I am afraid that our leaders, both at the centre and in this state, are playing with fire. The consequences could be terrible, much more than any of you expect.” He added: “Halfway through the proceedings, we got intelligence report certainly from one of the security agencies that they have information that the place is going to be attacked, so we should please try to wind up.
You can’t ignore information. So we cut short our proceedings and I think we were just barely lucky to have left there in time because thereafter it looked like all hell broke loose. People arrived here in about 10 vehicles shooting all over the place… People were injured.” He further questioned the lack of coordinated security response, saying: “There was no cooperation, coordination between the security agencies such that that venue at least will get emergency protection. People were able to come in so many vehicles, shoot their way, break into the building… and go away. And this is a state where we have a governor and where the first duty of any government is to protect us?”
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