Peter Obi’s Convoy Blocked by Youths on Benue Massacre Visit
NIGERIA · POLITICS
Key Facts
- —What happened A group of youths blocked the convoy of Peter Obi, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, at Gyado Villa along the Gboko Road in Benue State on Tuesday as he travelled towards Yelwata.
- —Why he was there Obi was heading to Yelwata, in Guma Local Government Area, to commiserate with families of the victims of the June 2025 massacre, in which reports said more than 100 people were killed.
- —What the police say The Benue State Police Command said Obi’s team notified it of the visit and that its officers provided security. Commissioner of Police Cletus Nwadiogbu said on Wednesday that key arrests had been made and that Obi was escorted safely back to the airport.
- —What the state government says Governor Hyacinth Alia’s office said it had not been informed of the visit and denied any involvement. His press secretary said the government “doesn’t patronize thugs” and that Obi was not a threat to the governor.
- —What the NDC says The party alleged that suspected hired thugs carried out the blockade. Its Benue governorship candidate, Terhemba Shija, said the visit had been officially notified to the police and the Department of State Services (DSS).
- —The reaction Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo, a senior figure in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), condemned the blockade on Wednesday and said politicians of every party must be free to campaign without intimidation.
Peter Obi’s attempt to visit the site of one of Nigeria’s worst massacres ended at a roadblock on Tuesday, when a group of youths stopped his convoy in Benue State. Police say they have made arrests, the state government denies any role, his party alleges hired thugs — and the incident has become the first major security confrontation of the presidential campaign season.
What happened on Tuesday
Obi, a former governor of Anambra State and the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), travelled to Benue State on Tuesday to visit Yelwata, a community in Guma Local Government Area where more than 100 people were reported killed in a single attack in June 2025. He planned to commiserate with the families of the victims.
His convoy never reached the village. A group of youths stopped it at Gyado Villa along the Gboko Road, outside the state capital, Makurdi. The reason for the blockade was not immediately clear, and by Wednesday the police said it remained under investigation. Obi later returned to Abuja.
The Benue State Police Command confirmed that Obi’s team had notified it of the visit in advance. “We can confirm that the police are aware of the incident involving Peter Obi’s movement to Yelwata. Police operatives provided security for the movement,” the command’s spokesman, Deputy Superintendent of Police Peter Aondongu, said in a statement on Tuesday. “The reason the convoy was blocked by some youths is still unknown.”
Arrests, and a defended police response
On Wednesday the Commissioner of Police in Benue, Cletus Nwadiogbu, told a press conference in Makurdi that arrests had been made in connection with the blockade, without giving the number of those held. “Key arrests have been made, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend all other persons connected with the incident,” he said.
The commissioner defended his officers’ handling of the confrontation, saying they had acted “in a professional and tactical manner to avoid an escalation that could have resulted in loss of lives and destruction of property.” He said Obi was subsequently escorted safely back to the airport and departed the state peacefully, and he stressed that no individual or group had the right to obstruct another person’s movement.
Two competing accounts
The state government, led by Governor Hyacinth Alia of the All Progressives Congress (APC), distanced itself from the incident within hours. The governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, said the government had not been informed of Obi’s visit. “Youth cannot do anything on behalf of government. Our government doesn’t patronize thugs and in any case Obi is not a threat to the governor,” he said, adding that as a presidential candidate Obi “is a property of federal government and ought to have been given security.”
The NDC rejected any suggestion that the blockade was spontaneous. The party described the incident as unacceptable and alleged that suspected hired thugs had blocked the convoy. Its governorship candidate in Benue, Professor Terhemba Shija, said the visit had been properly notified: “We duly informed police and DSS about his visit to the state. They deployed police and DSS to be with us,” he said, referring to the Department of State Services, Nigeria’s domestic intelligence agency. He called the blockade “a demonstration of fear, a clear show that Obi is the man to watch.”
Neither the allegation of hired thugs nor the suggestion of an unannounced visit has been independently established. The police investigation is the only process currently positioned to say who organised the roadblock, and why.
Keyamo’s intervention
The most prominent condemnation on Wednesday came from within the ruling party itself. Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, said the blockade “must be condemned by all men of goodwill,” regardless of who was behind it.
“Whether the protest was as a result of internal squabbles within the NDC (as posited by the Benue State Government) or sponsored by the APC or any other rival party, this should not be part of our democracy,” he said. He also dismissed the argument that Obi’s visit was politically motivated: “Everyone should be allowed to move about freely and play their politics without such crude interference.”
Keyamo paired the condemnation with an attack on what he called partisan media coverage, arguing that confrontations involving APC politicians are often reported as public rejection while similar incidents involving opposition figures are reported as attacks by sponsored thugs. “What is good for the goose is also good for the gander,” he said. “Whoever is angry at any candidate of any political party should display the anger with the ballot paper on voting day by a simple thumbprint, not by violent acts during campaigns.”
Why Yelwata matters
The June 2025 attack on Yelwata was one of the deadliest incidents in Benue in recent years, with reports putting the death toll at more than 100. The community has since become a symbol of the herder-farmer and communal violence that afflicts Nigeria’s Middle Belt, and a destination for politicians who want to show they take the insecurity seriously. Obi has previously visited other attacked communities in the state and called for stronger protection for residents.
Benue is also politically contested ground. Governor Alia won the state for the APC in 2023, but the opposition remains competitive there, and a high-profile condolence visit by a leading presidential contender was always going to carry campaign weight.
What to watch
Nigeria’s electoral commission has lifted the ban on campaigning ahead of the 2027 general election, and this is the first major security incident of the season involving a leading contender. Three things matter from here: whether the police name and charge those arrested; whether any evidence emerges of who organised the blockade; and whether other candidates’ movements in contested states pass without similar confrontations.
Obi has not said whether he will attempt the Yelwata visit again.
Frequently asked questions
Why was Peter Obi in Benue State?
He was travelling to Yelwata, in Guma Local Government Area, to commiserate with families of the victims of the June 2025 massacre, in which reports said more than 100 people were killed. His convoy was blocked by a group of youths before he could reach the community.
Who blocked Peter Obi’s convoy?
The police say the reason is still unknown and under investigation. The NDC alleges the youths were hired thugs; the Benue State government denies any involvement and says it was not informed of the visit. Police said on Wednesday that key arrests had been made.
Was Peter Obi harmed?
No. Police said their officers provided security for the visit and later escorted Obi safely back to the airport, from where he departed the state peacefully.
What is the NDC?
The Nigeria Democratic Congress is the political party on whose platform Peter Obi, a former Anambra State governor, is contesting the presidency ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general election.
What was the Yelwata massacre?
In June 2025, attackers killed more than 100 people in Yelwata, Benue State, according to reports at the time — one of the deadliest incidents in a long-running pattern of violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. The community has remained a symbol of the region’s insecurity.
Sources
- Punch — Benue govt not aware of Obi’s visit — Gov’s aide
- Punch — Police arrest suspects over Obi’s convoy blockade in Benue
- Punch — Keyamo condemns Obi’s Benue blockade, calls for media neutrality
- Premium Times — NDC, Sowore fault ‘attack, disruption’ of Peter Obi’s visit in Benue
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
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