In what appeared to be a dress rehearsal of what to expect in Edo State during political campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections, thugs, suspected to be agents of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday night attacked the state secretariat of the nascent African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Newsmata.com.ng reports that the attack reportedly took place some minutes after 8pm.
According to eyewitnesses, the thugs arrived in a white bus and poured what was suspected to be fuel around the building.
The timely intervention by sympathisers was however said to have saved the building from being razed, though some billboards around the building were pulled down while fire gutted a part of the building.
State Chairman of the Edo ADC, Kennedy Odion, said the party moved into the secretariat last month.
Odion said it was no coincidence that the attack occurred weeks after the Edo State Chairman of the APC, Jarret Tenebe, threatened not to allow any opposition in the state.
The visibly distraught ADC chairman called on security agencies to fish out the attackers and prosecute them to avoid future occurrence.
Giving an insight into the incident, Odion said, “I got a distress call yesterday that our secretariat was on fire. I got across to security agencies to help put out the fire. Eyewitnesses said they saw a bus that brought some masked boys. The witnesses said the boys poured fuel around the building to set it on fire.
“They destroyed the party’s billboards and other things. We have reported the incident for security agencies to bring the perpetrators to book. We believe the APC had threatened that they will not allow any opposition to grow in this state.
“This statement was credited to Jarret Tenebe where he said he will not watch the ADC exist in this state. We are calling on the federal government to make a statement and arrest the arsonists. We believe in a democratic process and that is why we are calling on the authorities to make sure this thing does not happen again.
“We moved into this place on January 17th, this year. We have arrangement with local security to secure the place. We are still putting the place in order. The attackers tried to break into the building. This showed that you cannot silence the people. We didn’t pay the people that chased the attackers away. The security agencies must separate themselves from government and do the needful.”
Confirming the incident, spokesman for the Edo State Police Command, Eno Ikoedem, an assistant superintendent of police, (ASP) said suspected hoodlums invaded the party’s premises and destroyed properties.
ASP Ikoedem said police operatives were immediately mobilised to the scene to restore normalcy.
According to her, “Preliminary assessment revealed malicious damage to flags and two shattered windows in the premises. Security has since been deployed to the area to forestall further attacks, while investigations are ongoing to identify and apprehend those responsible.
“The command appreciates the prompt call that was made to the Control room which saved the day, encourages everyone in distress to do same through its dedicated lines, and warns miscreants against such heinous act as anyone found culpable will be made to face the full wrath of the law.”