By Kingston Magare 8.9.2026
Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has warned State governors who deliberately block his way saying he too has the capability to respond to threats to his safety.
Mr. Obi was reacting after his way route was blocked by thugs alleged to be acting on the orders of Benue government officials while he was on his way to Yelewata.
According to reports the thugs prevented Obi from reaching Makurdi by blocking the road at Gyado Villa along Gboko Road.
Reacting to the incident, the second after thugs unleashed gunfire on him and other political leaders in Benin City earlier in the year, Obi said: “I’m using this occasion to appeal to the IG of police, the Director of DSS, and other agencies to please intervene and call various state governors to order, I was a governor myself.
“This rascality cannot be allowed, we have a country, we too have followers and people who can confront these people on our own if the state and the government can no longer provide us security.
“I am here in a place where people have been killed. I am here to commiserate with them, but now I have been told that youths sponsored by the governor have blocked the road and made sure I do not go in,” Obi said.
“We cannot go on this way, it’s not acceptable. This was why when I participated in the presidential campaign office launch of APM yesterday, I said we need unity, love, justice, and let this campaign be concentrated on ideas and issues that concerns Nigerians today like insecurity, hunger, insecurity, killings, and how we are going to pull our people out of poverty, that’s what it should be.”
Meanwhile the Benue State government said it was unaware Obi and his entourage were visiting Benue even as the Benue police command confirmed that they were aware Obi was coming.
“We are not aware of his coming to the state, and if it were to be security agents that stopped him, it would have been easy for us to find out what happened,” said Kula Tersoo who is the press secretary to Benue State governor Hyacinth Alia, Kula.
“We were surprised that youth would stop someone, youth can not do anything on behalf of the government. Our government doesn’t patronize thugs and in any case Obi is not a threat to the governor, we are not aware that Obi is coming to Benue.”
