The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, said his visit to Benue State was to sympathise with a community that recently lost residents, not to campaign.
Obi spoke on Tuesday after his convoy reportedly encountered a road blockade as it entered the state.
The former Anambra State governor said the incident reflected what he described as the deteriorating state of political tolerance in Nigeria, calling for a shift from divisive politics to one centred on unity.
“I am in Benue today not for campaigns. I only wanted to go to a place where people lost their lives, to condole and show solidarity with them,” Obi said.
Reacting to the reported obstruction of his convoy, Obi expressed concern over the direction of political activities in the country.
He said political differences should not prevent Nigerians from showing compassion to communities affected by tragedy.
“You can see the level to which our politics has degenerated,” he said.
Obi recalled that he had made a similar appeal a day earlier while attending the inauguration of an office belonging to a candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement.
“That was why yesterday, while joining the APM candidate in launching his office, I used the opportunity to plead with our people, let our next politics be a politics of unity,” he added.
Earlier on Tuesday, Obi’s media aide, Esther Umoh, alleged that suspected thugs blocked Boko Road, near the Nigerian Air Force Base, shortly after the NDC candidate and his entourage arrived in Benue.
Umoh shared footage of the incident on 𝕏 and alleged that those responsible intended to stop the convoy from proceeding further.
“We have just arrived in Benue State, where alleged sponsored thugs have blocked Boko Road by the Air Force Base, attempting to prevent Peter Obi from gaining access into the state,” she wrote.
In another video circulated by the aide, some individuals were seen running after vehicles believed to be part of Obi’s convoy.
