Group condemns attack on Senator Monday Okpebholo’s motorcade 

Spark News Daily recalls that some suspected political thugs attacked Okpebholo and Shaibu while exiting the Benin Airport, shortly after they arrived from Abuja. The police inspector attached to the Senator was killed in the incident.

However, a statement by the Convener of Unity Ambassadors Initiative, Comrade Philip Martins Eghomare, and made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja, strongly condemned the attack on Senator Okpebholo, pointing out Francis Inegbeniki, a PDP chieftain as the leader of the political thugs. 

“The Unity Ambassadors Initiative strongly condemns the motorcade of Senator Monday Okpebholo, the APC governorship candidate, who was brutally attacked on his way from Benin Airport by members of Edo State Security Network and Edo state government sponsored thugs allegedly led by Francis Inegbeniki”. 

Comrade Eghomare therefore called on the governor of the state, Godwin Obaseki to immediately produce the perpetrator of the attack, while urging the government to uphold the rule of law and ensure the safety of all indigenes during this election period.

He said elections are a fundamental part of our democratic process, and every citizen has the right to participate safely and freely without fear of harm. According to him, violence and intimidation have no place in a healthy democracy. 

While urging all the political actors to show respect for the democratic process. Comrade Eghomare said rather than resorting to violence, all political stakeholders should resolve their conflicts through peaceful dialogue.

The Convener counseled politicians to focus their efforts on putting forward their policy platforms and engaging voters, saying, “Ultimately, it is the will of the people, expressed through free and fair elections, that should determine the outcome – not the use of force or fear”.

“We call on law enforcement to swiftly investigate and prosecute the people responsible for the death (insp. Akur Onuh) officers. And we implore all citizens to participate peacefully and with civility as we choose our next leaders (Governor).

“We are sending warning to the opposition party, that Edo state is not for sale but for all its indigenes. And the live of our candidate must not be tempered with, if such an urgly incident occur again! It will not be taken lightly. We the Esan- central are strongly behind our illustrious son, Senator Monday Okpebholo, our incoming Governor by God’s grace.

“We are using this occasion to call on the IGP Kayode Egbetokun to swiftly investigate the incident that led to the killing of that gallant officer (insp. Akur Onuh), prosecute the perpetrator and justice must be served to serve as deterrent to other political thugs.  

“We in the Unity Ambassador Initiatives call on the people of goodwill to come and exercise their civil right, President Abraham Lincoln once said, “The ballot is stronger than the bullet. Therefore, I encourage us to come out emass without any fear or intimidation on September 21st and vote for Senator Monday Okpebholo”, the statement reads in part.