The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Benue State, Prof. Terhemba Shija, has accused the state government of plotting to disrupt the planned visit of the party's presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to Yelwata community in Guma Local Government Area.
Shija, who raised the alarm at a press conference in Makurdi on Tuesday ahead of Obi's visit scheduled for Wednesday, called on security agencies, particularly the police and the Department of State Services (DSS), to guarantee the safety of the presidential candidate and his supporters.
He alleged that the state government was unhappy with Obi's planned visit and had threatened to prevent him from visiting Yelewata, where he is expected to pay tribute to victims of the last year's deadly attack that claimed about 271 lives and commiserate with their families.
The NDC candidate further alleged that during Obi's previous attempt to visit the community about two months ago, suspected political thugs attacked his supporters with stones in an attempt to frustrate the visit.
Shija describing the alleged incident as 'a monumental national disgrace and a display of immaturity' warned that nobody had the right to prevent the presidential candidate from visiting the community.
'You cannot stop a moving train,' he said, urging the state government to shelve what he described as its 'diabolical plan' to disrupt the visit.
He, however, said arrangements had been concluded for Obi's visit, which would combine humanitarian and political engagements, explaining that the former Anambra State governor would lay a wreath at the cenotaph of the victims along Lafia road in Yelewata before proceeding to Makurdi for a town hall meeting.
Shija clarified that Obi would not visit any government facility or IDP camp but would interact with a cross-section of residents at the Multi-purpose Hall of the Mission House, behind the Benue Links head office, Wurukum, Makurdi.
The NDC governorship candidate urged traditional rulers, civil society organisations, students, women, youths, labour unions and other residents to turn out to receive Obi, whom he described as 'the man who would soon be President.'
While insisting that the party would not resort to violence, Shija said the NDC would not succumb to intimidation or abandon its constitutional responsibility to mobilise support ahead of the 2027 general elections.
'The Nigeria Democratic Congress will not yield to any blackmail or intimidation, neither are we going to succumb to the temptation to take laws into our hands,' he said.
Shija also used the occasion to unveil what he described as his 'Rescue and Reset Agenda' for Benue, identifying insecurity, displacement and economic backwardness as major challenges confronting the state despite its enormous agricultural and mineral resources.
But, in a swift reaction, the Benue State government dismissed the allegations, insisting that it has no objection to his presence in the state.
The State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Chief Solomon Iorpev, accused Obi of seeking to create controversy around his visit, claiming that the former Anambra State governor was deliberately generating negative publicity to portray the state government in a bad light.
Iorpev said there was nothing extraordinary about Obi's visit to Benue, questioning why the administration should be apprehensive about his political activities.
'Why should the Benue State Government be afraid of him? We're not afraid of him. He can come to Benue State,' the spokesperson said.
He maintained that the government's position had consistently been that Obi, as a presidential candidate, should follow the necessary protocols by formally notifying the state government of his visit.
The government spokesperson added that Obi had lost the privileges of an ordinary citizen by virtue of his political status and should not enter and leave the state without informing the authorities.
Iorpev, however, acknowledged that Obi had now complied with the requirements, saying the government had seen the letters and acknowledgement documents relating to the visit.
He nevertheless alleged that the controversy surrounding the planned visit was being deliberately orchestrated by Obi's camp to discredit the state government.
The commissioner described Obi's approach as an attempt to generate sympathy and online attention even as he accused the presidential candidate of seeking publicity rather than focusing on the purpose of his visit.
Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for Benue command, DSP Peter Aondongu, confirmed that Obi had written to inform the police about his visit to the state.
The PPRO said adequate security arrangements were being made to guarantee the safety of the NDC presidential candidate visit to the state.