Opposition parties mount pressure on FG over campaign trail attacks

Opposition political parties are alarmed over a worrying new trend of attacks on their candidates and campaign trails as preparations hot up for the 2027 polls.

Findings by the Nigerian Tribune on Sunday indicated that the development had led the parties to mount pressure on the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government to intervene immediately to prevent the unfolding scenario from ballooning into a major crisis capable of threatening the polls.

The 2027 elections are four months away, kicking off with the Presidential and National Assembly polls on January 16.

A number of incidents that occurred lately reportedly jolted the opposition political parties.

For instance, on Tuesday last week, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Peter Obi, was stopped by stick-wielding miscreants from entering Yelwata in Benue State, where he was headed to visit families affected by killings in the area.

The Nigerian Tribune recalls that armed herders attacked Yelwata on June 13, 2025, killing and maiming villagers.

An anniversary memorial report on the Yelwata massacre put the number of deaths at over 271.

Obi’s convoy was stopped and forced to make a U-turn, thereby aborting the trip, although the APC-led state government later blamed the development on security risks and the alleged failure of Obi to inform Governor Hyacinth Alia about his visit.

Similarly, on Wednesday, the following day, in Kaduna State, suspected thugs physically attacked the campaign trail of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), resulting in the police using tear gas to disperse the massing youths and prevent a breakdown of law and order.

Both Kaduna and Benue are APC-controlled states.

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Added to this was a similar incident in Edo State, another APC-controlled state, where Governor Monday Okpebholo had earlier warned Obi against visiting the state. It was gathered that opposition parties were beginning to worry that this might be a pattern leading up to the elections, in a bid to intimidate their candidates and stifle their campaigns.

Investigations indicated that political parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP) and the Allied People’s Movement (APM), were pushing for President Bola Tinubu, in particular, to caution APC governors against what some of their officials described as “apparent intimidation tactics.”

When contacted, the Labour Party said the first measure was for Tinubu to intervene by directly engaging with the governors over the matter.

Commenting on the party’s position, the National Publicity Secretary, Mr Ken Asogwa, stated that if Tinubu did not make the first move to send a strong message, the credibility of the polls might come under serious doubt.

“As a political party, we urge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to rein in the governors.

“If such actions (attacks on campaign trails) are left unchecked, they could derail our already wobbling democracy,” he said.

The party disclosed that it was ready to defend its campaign programme and “continue to condemn every attempt to weaponise state power against political opponents and will continue to stand firmly for democracy, constitutional rights and the rule of law.”

In a similar vein, the Tanimu Turaki-led PDP, which said it was working with the opposition coalition ahead of the polls, called on the relevant authorities to halt the alleged attempts to muzzle the opposition.

The party told the Nigerian Tribune that all “legal measures” at its disposal would be deployed to prevent anyone from disallowing democratic ideals to thrive in Nigeria.

Speaking to the newspaper, the National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, said, “The war rhetoric and violent physical attacks on opposition party figures are an attempt to reenact fiercely violent campaigns and elections.

“This trend must be condemned by all right-minded people as it is an affront to true democracy and an enabler for the enthronement of electoral authoritarianism.

“If allowed to persist, it means no candidate will be able to campaign everywhere, as every candidate will be prevented from campaigning in his opponent’s terrain.”

He added, “It is surprising that the attacks are coming from the APC, which claims dominance in the country but yet has intimidation as a strategy of political mobilisation.

“If the party and its candidates are as popular as they claim, why are they busy threatening people to vote for them? Why the coercion?”