Narrow Escape in Benin City: Intelligence Alert Saves Peter Obi, Odigie-Oyegun from Gunmen Attack During ADC Defection Ceremony

 

Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi and African Democratic Congress (ADC) national leader, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, on Tuesday narrowly escaped what they described as an assassination attempt by gunmen in Benin City, Edo State.

The incident occurred shortly after a high-profile political gathering at the ADC state secretariat on Ogbelaka Street, off Sapele Road, where Obi and other party leaders formally received former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President Olumide Akpata and his supporters into the ADC.

According to eyewitnesses and party officials, gunmen in about 10 vehicles, including an unmarked Sienna bus and motorcycles, stormed the secretariat minutes after the leaders departed. They fired sporadic shots, vandalised canopies, chairs, and banners, and injured at least three people. The attackers then proceeded to Chief Odigie-Oyegun’s residence on Reservation Road, where they riddled parked vehicles with bullets and left the gate perforated with bullet holes.

Chief Odigie-Oyegun recounted the dramatic escape: “Halfway through the proceedings, we got intelligence report certainly from one of the security agencies that the place was 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 added a stern warning: “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.”

Peter Obi, who was in Benin for the defection, described the scene outside Oyegun’s residence: “This is a former governor of the state. 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… It is time to speak up.”

Gunmen attack Obi, Odigie-Oyegun, ADC chiefs + Video, photos |

National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Yunusa Tanko, said armed individuals trailed the convoy from the secretariat to the residence. Edo ADC Chairman Kennedy Odion confirmed three injuries and said the matter has been reported to the police. The Edo State Police Command confirmed the attack by “suspected hoodlums,” noted no fatalities, and said investigations are ongoing with reinforced security at the scenes.