The presidential candidate for the African Action Congress, (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has alleged that the Benue State Government was behind the blockade of Peter Obi’s convoy, claiming the incident was planned to prevent the Labour Party presidential candidate from entering Makurdi.
The incident occurred during Peter Obi’s visit to Benue State on Tuesday, where his movement was reportedly disrupted by a hostile crowd chanting for him to leave.
Sowore said the presence of a special adviser to the state governor among those involved strengthened his belief that the action was government-sponsored.
“The clearer indication that the government was involved was actually made available by Mr. Peter Obi himself, who stated clearly that one of the special advisers to the governor was seen as part of the crowd that was chanting, ‘Peter Obi, go back.’ They were very menacing, and there was a lot of activity on their part that would make him feel unsafe.
“My position is that nobody should be prevented from going anywhere in Nigeria. You need not doubt that this was government-sponsored. It is written all over the crowd, their conduct, and the body language of the security agencies hanging around who knew who these persons were. Since this activity took place today, we haven’t heard officially from the police force.
“I think the state governor or his people have responded as expected—they know who did it, and I’m sure they were part of the planning to prevent him from entering Makurdi, and that’s a shame.”
Despite his longstanding political disagreements with Obi, Sowore maintained that their differences are ideological rather than personal. He said he does not wish Obi or anyone in his delegation harm, stressing that every Nigerian’s rights should be protected regardless of political affiliation.
“My differences are ideological with him. The principal differences are what he represents and what I represent when looking at his records. I am in the business of saving people. If I am President of Nigeria, you can be guaranteed that your rights are protected whether you are a Jew or a Gentile. I am not going to treat you differently because you’re not a member of my party, my religion, or my ethnicity—that’s what the Nigerian constitution guarantees today.
“I don’t wish him death, definitely. I don’t want any harm to come upon him, any member of his delegation, or his campaign team wherever they go in Nigeria. I will go all out to help fish out the people who did this or call on the authorities involved to ensure that these persons are fished out and adequately sanctioned for this very terrible action they took against Peter Obi and his delegation, which prevented him from continuing his campaigns in Benue State.”
Sowore warned that the incident could be a test of how far political intimidation can go ahead of the 2027 elections, cautioning that if such attacks are allowed to succeed, they could escalate into further violence and even assassinations.
“I am calling on Nigerians to reject any form of intimidation or political violence that can prevent them from participating fully in the democratic transition that has already started and will last until January 2027.
“They are just testing the waters. If this works, then nobody is safe; you will find more of these kinds of intimidation attacks, and it will quickly snowball into assassinations.
“We have a duty to stop them. I am calling on all candidates to condemn this and unite around ensuring that anybody participating in the democratic process is not prevented from carrying out their legitimate campaigns within and outside Nigeria—everyone, without exception.”
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