Worries over violence as Edo gov poll approaches

As the governorship election in Edo State fast-approaches, the major political actors are literally at each other’s throat in the bid to secure a majority of the votes at the September 21 poll. ‘SUYI AYODELE writes on the intensity of the electioneering and exchange of diatribes among the camps of the main political parties fielding candidates for the poll.

The air of relative peace in Edo State was punctured on Thursday, July 18, when the impeached but court-restored deputy governor of the state, Philip Shaibu, made his way to Benin City from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, where a Federal High Court, presided by Justice J.K. Omotoso, restored him as the deputy governor.

Shaibu, who was earlier impeached by the Edo State House of Assembly in April, had approached the court, seeking the orders of the court to discountenance his impeachment. Justice Omotoso granted Shaibu’s prayers on Wednesday, July 17, and the following day, Shaibu, in the company of the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the forthcoming September 21, 2024, election, Senator Monday Okpebholo, arrived the state capital in a chartered aircraft.

Waiting at the Benin Airport to receive the duo were members of the APC, some supporters of the party and a huge number of youths. Prior to the arrival of Shaibu and Okpebholo, the youth wing of the APC had staged a carnival-like motorcade around the ever-busy Airport Road, with the rumour becoming rife that upon arrival, Shaibu would be accompanied to the deputy governor office located at Dennis Osadebey Avenue, G.R.A., Benin City, to take over as the restored and substantive deputy governor.

With the rumour, and in order not to be caught napping, the state government which had appointed Godwins Marvelous Omobayo as the replacement for Shaibu, mobilised security agents, and vigilante of the Edo State Security Network (ESSN), to secure the deputy governor’s office and cordoned off the adjoining streets to the office. Some detachments of the ESSN personnel were also deployed on the Airport Road, with one detachment stationed very close to the exit gate of the Benin Airport.

Benin City was practically on the edge. The tension was palpable and the atmosphere ominous! The then Commissioner of Police in charge of the Edo State Police Command, Funsho Adegboye, also mobilised men and officers of the command to the airport. Minutes after Shaibu and Okpebholo disembarked from the aircraft and their motorcade made its way out of the airport, hell was let lose. From nowhere came gunshots with people having to scamper to safety. By the time the dust settled, a police Inspector, Onu Ako, attached to the security details of the APC governorship candidate, Okpebholo, was in the pool of his own blood.

The incident has since then been greeted with accusation and counter-accusation. Firing the first salvo, the state government, in its immediate reaction to the incident, pointed an accusing finger at Shaibu, whom it alleged had an antecedent for violence. This was just as the government vowed that Shaibu would be made to face the music.

Chris Osa Nehikhare, the Edo State Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, in a statement, after the shootings, claimed that the propensity of Shaibu for violence “is well-documented and has been warned several times by respected figures, including the revered Benin monarch to shun violence.

Osa added: “The Edo State Government has observed the level of wanton destruction perpetrated by thugs and elements working in connivance with former deputy governor of the state, Philip Shaibu in the guise of purportedly enforcing a judgement reinstating him in office.

“Shaibu led thugs through the Airport Road axis of Benin city, attacking innocent citizens and unleashing mayhem on private citizens who were going about their lawful businesses. The state government through this statement is warning Shaibu to desist from this turn to violence in the pretense that he is enforcing a judgement. He is reminded that he is not above the law and is liable for the wanton destruction perpetrated by him and his co-travellers.

“We want to reiterate that Shaibu will face the consequences of violence that he has resorted to in pursuit of his aim to return to the Edo State Government House even when he is aware that a stay of execution of the judgement has been filed.”

The APC also fired back almost immediately. The legislative aide to Senator Okpebholo on Media and Communication, Godswill Inegbe, in a statement, accused a leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Francis Inegbeniki, of being the mastermind of the fracas. Inegbe, in the statement alleged that: “During the unprovoked brutal attack, three mobile policemen attached to the security detail of Senator Okpebholo were injured with bullet wounds, while one of the policemen has been declared dead. Senator Monday Okpebholo is at this moment admitted in an undisclosed hospital in Benin City receiving medical attention, and other members of his entourage who were victims of the brutal attack are in various hospitals in Benin City.”

But, Inegbeniki immediately denied the allegation, stressing that he was nowhere near the airport let alone sponsoring or leading anyone to attack the motorcade of the APC candidate. Describing the allegation as a plot to tarnish his image, the PDP leader said: “It is not true that I led or sponsored thugs on protest along Airport Road in Benin City. As I speak, I was never on Airport Road as at the time the said confrontation took place. It is very wrong for anyone for any reason to accuse me of leading or sponsoring any protest. I urge the government, security agencies and the general public to disregard the falsehood The election is around the corner, and I quite understand that my enemies would do anything desperately to blackmail me or tarnish my reputation.”

Not yet done, the APC also accused the Commissioner of Police, Adegboye, of complicity in the shootings, and called for his immediate sack. At a press conference he addressed on July 19, Kasim Afegbua, Director of Media, APC Governorship Campaign Council, said that the party had petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, over the matter and urged the IGP to look thoroughly into how the Edo Commissioner of Police allegedly undermined the role of police.

According to Afegbua, some members of the APC, who were present at the Benin Airport to receive Shaibu, and who saw the Commissioner of Police at the airport, shared the intelligence of what was about to happen, but unfortunately, he alleged, the police boss ignored the information.

“It is disheartening to observe that while the shootings were going on, the Edo State Commissioner of Police, CP Funso Adeboye was on ground at the Benin airport, and he did nothing to repel the vicious attack which led to the death of one of his officers. As fate would have it, it was our candidate’s police attaché that was killed; our candidate and the deputy governor missed death by the whisker. From eyewitness accounts, it is very clear that some of these hoodlums are members of the Edo Vigilante Network who were fully knitted in their uniforms.

“Indeed, is it very striking to observe that under the watchful eyes of the Edo State Commissioner of Police, one of his serving officers was killed without any iota of concern from him, indicative of the grand design by him in connivance with the state governor and the PDP candidate, Barrister Asue Ighodalo. The Commissioner of Police, Edo State Command has willfully undermined the responsibility placed on him by law, that is, protection of lives and property within his jurisdiction as he has become the puppet of the governor from whom he takes politically-minded instructions,” Afegbua said.

Thus, the commissioner of Police became the sacrificial lamb as both the APC and the PDP over the shootings. Adegboye, however, dismissed the claim of ‘shared intelligence” as not true. The top police brass, who disclosed that his command had made some progress and had identified some of the suspects involved in the shootings, said:  “There was no intelligence report but all we could say was that there were a lot of supporters. Nobody gave an intelligence report that something is going to happen. I was at the airport to see things for myself, with my men and to ensure that law and order was maintained. There was no single incident within the airport. People were dancing happily until after the airport premises.”

The CP, who has now been replaced by Nemi Edwin-Iwo, hinted the incident might not be unconnected to the attempt by Shaibu to enforce the July 17 reinstatement order by the Abuja Federal High Court.  “It is a simple thing, if there is a court case, this has to be pursued to a logical conclusion in the court. This is to make the job of the police simple. Our job is simple if our political gladiators want us to make it so. You have a judgement, and you have another judgement, whatever, please, pursue it in the court. It is not the duty of the police to now say, go and enforce. The court will direct the bailiff to enforce most judgements. It is the duty of the police to protect the bailiff, for the safety of the ballif and the instructions will come from the appropriate quarters.”

The question that has remained unanswered has been if the shootings have the imprimatur of Shaibu, or if it was a mere coincidence that the incident happened the very day Shaibu made open his discreet romance with the APC. This question became germane given that after the shootings, Shaibu rode with Okpebholo to the APC secretariat, and two days later, on Saturday, July 20, he formally joined the APC, where his erstwhile godfather and mentor, the immediate past governor of the state, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, received him.

A prominent Edo State political figure, who spoke on the matter pleading anonymity, drew attention to the counsel by the Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II, Oba of Benin, given to Shaibu during the build-up to a similar election in 2020, and the attendant violence that accompanied the electioneering. Oba Ewuare II. Worried by the prevalent violence in the state then, especially immediately the duo of Governor Obaseki and his deputy, Shaibu, were disqualified from the governorship race of the APC, had called all the gladiators in the state to his palace.

In an unmistaken manner, the highly respected Benin monarch told Shaibu, who was present with his principal, Obaseki, that information at his (Omo N’Oba’) disposal pointed at Shaibu as being behind the violence in the state. Oba Ewuare, at the all-important peace parley, said that he had hitherto regarded Shaibu as a son, but with the development, he was not sure if he could still call the deputy government his son.

However, Shaibu has dismissed all claims linking him to the violence in the state as mere political propaganda. Musa Ebomhiana, the media aide to Shaibu, at different fora dismissed the tag of violence the opposition party was ready to hand on Shaibu as akin to an attempt to call a dog a bad name in order to hang it.

It is also gratifying to note that the various security agencies are not resting on their oars at ensuring a violence-free poll as the citizens of the state step out on September 21 to cast their ballots. The state police command said it was engaging with various stakeholders to ensure a hitch-free exercise. The assurance became imperative in view of the recent fear raised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) during its third regular quarterly consultative meeting with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), in Abuja.

During the ceremony, INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, advised political parties to play by the rules and shun anything that could cause violence during the governorship election in Edo. The state government has also promised to get rid of criminal elements, particularly cultists from the state to stem the tide of insecurity in the state. Cultists and other undesirable elements, have always been handy tools in the hands of politicians in the state

Edo Police Command Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Moses Yamu, said that the command had embarked on wide consultation with relevant stakeholders towards ensuring peace and security in the state.

“We are committed to providing adequate security for the people before, during and after the election in Edo State. So far, we are doing consultation with other relevant security agencies. So, the Nigerian police and other sister security agencies will definitely be on ground to guarantee the safety of voters and election materials on that day. A society cannot exist without crime. All we are here to do is to make sure that we reduce the crime rate because anybody would be lying if he tells you that he can eliminate crime from society. But we are doing our possible best to ensure that crime is brought to the barest minimum in Edo,” he said.

Will all the assurances translate to positive actions and a hitch-free election? Time will tell.

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