Former Edo State LP governorship candidate Olumide Akpata has revealed how he and other ADC leaders, including Peter Obi, narrowly escaped death during a violent attack in Benin City. The motorcade was targeted by suspected assassins during Akpata’s declaration into the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Akpata explained that timely intelligence prompted them to move quickly to a safe location, Chief John Oyegun’s house, just before the ADC Secretariat was attacked. He described the gunfire as intense, noting that anyone in the vehicles at the Secretariat would have been killed.
He criticized claims by the Edo State government that the incident was an internal party dispute, insisting the attack was a dangerous message to voters aimed at discouraging political participation. Security operatives, including DSS and SSS personnel, had to intervene to protect the leaders.
Akpata called the incident an attack on democracy, stressing that such violence creates fear and deters citizens from engaging in political processes, highlighting the growing insecurity surrounding party politics in Edo State.
