Politics

Lawyers drag Tinubu, AGF, others to Court over alleged threat to Peter Obi ’s life

Published

3 weeks ago

July 29, 2026

Lawyers operating under the aegis of the Obident Lawyers Forum have asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to order President Bola Tinubu to compel the police, Department of State Service (DSS), and others to give special protection to the presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Peter Obi, ahead of the 2027 election.

The legal practitioners informed the court that their appeal has become imperative so as not to make Peter Obi a victim of political assassination before and during the 2027 general electioneering process.

The request was contained in a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1648/2016, instituted against Tinubu, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the Director-General (DSS), and the Governor of Edo State.

Plaintiffs in the suits filed on Monday predicated their request on a statement credited to Edo State Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo to the effect that Obi’s life and security would not be guaranteed in Edo State if he enters the state without getting approval from the governor.

The Obident lawyers represented by Barrister Okere Kingdom Nnamdi and Joseph Enemona Ameh instituted the fundamental rights suit on behalf of Peter Obi, in which they prayed the court to issue an order that Peter Obi has the fundamental right to freedom of movement without any hindrance.

Among other reliefs, they asked the court to declare Peter Obi, the 2027 Presidential Candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), has the fundamental right to life and the right to live without any fear, discrimination, threat of assassination, intimidation or any form of harassment whatsoever, as guaranteed in section 33 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria.

In addition, they urged the court to declare that Peter Obi must not be subjected to politically motivated coercion, threat to life, bullying, harassment, assault, intimidation and victimization whatsoever by any arm of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or any authority, person, individual, or group agent/agency of the Federal Government or Government of any sub-regional state on the grounds of his political ideology, ethnicity, and religion; or for any reason whatsoever.

Others are “A declaration that Mr. Peter Obi, the 2027 Presidential Candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), has the fundamental rights of free ingress and egress into any of the 36 States of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the FCT, and can freely move around, enter, visit, stay, reside, inhabit and organize, attend and host his political campaign rallies, consultations, seminars, groups meetings and carryout his lawful activities in any part of Nigeria, without fear of assassination, threat to his life, bullying, harassment, assault, intimidation and victimization whatsoever, by any Arm of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or any authority, person(s) individual or groups, agents/agencies of the Federal Government or government of any sub-regional State, as guaranteed in sections 39, 40, 41, and 42 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“A declaration that the threats by the Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo that Mr. Peter Obi’s life and security are not guaranteed in Edo State, and that Mr. Peter Obi should not to step into Edo State without getting a clearance from him are empty not backed by law, anti-democratic, illegal, unlawful and tantamount to executive rascality, infantile politicking, and power-drunkenness.

“A declaration that the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Commander in Chief of The Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has the constitutional mandate/responsibility to provide adequate security of life and property to the citizens, which is the fundamental reason/purpose/objective of every government; and the President has the constitutional responsibility as Commander in Chief to direct the 3th, 4th and 5th Respondents and Heads of all Security Agencies in Nigeria to provide maximum security protection/intelligence to Obi and all other presidential candidates”.

Plaintiffs further urged a declaration that the laws setting up the security agencies mandate and empower the 3rd, 4th, and 5th respondents to provide adequate security to the citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria against all criminal activities aimed at depriving citizens of their properties or lives.

They asked the court to make an order “compelling, directing, and mandating the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to direct the 3th, 4th and 5th Respondents and Heads of all other Security Agencies in Nigeria to provide maximum security protection/intelligence to Mr Peter Gregory Obi, the 2027 Presidential Candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) and all other 2027 presidential candidates.

“An order compelling, directing and mandating the 3th, 4th and 5 Respondents to immediately provide maximum security personnel to Physically Protect and Provide Security Intelligence to Mr Peter Gregory Obi, the NDC 2027 Presidential candidates”.

In an affidavit deposed in support of the suit, the plaintiffs stated that the application was brought on behalf of Mr Peter Obi, pursuant to Paragraph 3 (e) of the Preamble to the Fundamental Human Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules 2009.

“That the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, said in a recent live podcast that “he may not be alive to contest next ‘year’s presidential election.”

While claiming that Obi has been subjected to serious psychological torture and trauma by the numerous threats to his life and this is detrimental to his constitutional rights, the deponent argued that no person or authority or any arm of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or any authority, person(s) individual or groups, agents/agencies of the Federal Government or Government of any sub-regional State, has the powers to restrict or refuse any citizen from entering and exiting any part of Nigeria to carry out his lawful activities as guaranteed in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“That the 6th Respondent, the Governor of Edo State of Nigeria, Senator Monday Okpebholo, threatened Mr Peter Gregory Obi not to enter Edo State without his permission and that Mr Peter Gregory Obi’s life and security is not guaranteed in Edo State. A computer-generated printout of the news report is herein pleaded and exhibited as Exhibit 3.

“That the threats by the Edo State Governor, Sen. Monday Okpebholo, that Mr. Peter Obi’s life and security are not guaranteed in Edo State, and that Mr Peter Obi should not to step into Edo State without getting a clearance from him are empty, not backed by law, anti-democratic, illegal, unlawful and tantamount to executive rascality, infantile-politicking and power-drunkenness.

“That the security agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria, sued as 3rd, 4th and 5th respondents, have constitutional and statutory responsibilities to provide adequate security of life and properties of the citizens.

“That the constitutional rights guaranteed in Chapter Four of the 1999 constitution are inalienable and cannot be taken away under any guise.”

Meanwhile, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.

tribuneonlineng.com

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Politics

Osun poll: APC won’t rush to congratulate Adeleke – Campaign DG revealed

Published

5 hours ago

August 18, 2026

Newsbreak365_Admin

The Director-General of the All Progressives Congress governorship campaign in Osun State, Oluwole Oke, has said the party will not be pressured into congratulating Governor Ademola Adeleke over his victory in the August 15 governorship election.

Oke stated this in an interview with Arise News on Monday, saying the APC was reviewing the election results and would determine its next step after examining the records.

He said the position of President Bola Tinubu, who had congratulated Adeleke following the declaration of the result by the Independent National Electoral Commission, was different from that of the party’s campaign team, which was “on the ground” and assessing the process.

“And like I’ve told you that what we are doing, even for future, for records, is to conduct a thorough review of the entire process and then form our opinion.

“We won’t be under any sort of pressure to easily reach out to congratulate Senator Ademola Adeleke,” Oke said.

He added, “We do not agree with the declaration of INEC. That’s our position for now. We believe he did not score the highest valid votes.”

INEC declared Adeleke, the Accord candidate, winner of the election after he polled 511,067 votes to defeat the APC candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, who scored 444,815 votes. ADC candidate Najeem Salaam came third with 17,180 votes.

Adeleke won in 19 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured 11, giving the incumbent a winning margin of 66,252 votes.

Following the declaration, Adeleke said he expected Oyebamiji to call and congratulate him, describing it as the “civilised thing to do.”

However, Oke said the APC campaign team was more concerned with reviewing the electoral process before making any decision.

“When you have a project of this nature with the outcome announced by INEC, we will not be in a haste, nor shall we be under pressure without doing the needful,” he said.

According to him, the party had commenced an audit of the election and directed its agents to submit relevant result sheets for scrutiny.

“We have embarked on an audit process. We have asked all our party agents to submit copies of Forms EC8A, B, and C to our secretariat for review. We need to inspect the materials,” Oke said.

Meanwhile, the party’s Director of Media and Information, Kola Olabisi, said the APC was still studying the results from all 332 wards.

The party said an election was “a process that continues through the tribunal, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court,” adding that it would consult its lawyers and explore all legal options available under the Electoral Act if irregularities were discovered.

Oke said the party would also examine issues arising from the pre-election period and the conduct of the election against provisions of the Electoral Act and other relevant laws.

“Until we do that and form our opinion, we won’t be able to go further to say anything on this,” he said.

The APC campaign DG also criticised the Adeleke administration, questioning its record in education, healthcare and support for farmers in the state.

He said, “When you look at this in totality, you can see the failures of government glaring in the citizens’ faces.”

Oke urged the public to give the party time to complete its assessment of the election before it announces its next course of action.

Source: punchng.com

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Politics

Youths vow to reject incompetent leaders in South East ahead of 2027

Published

5 hours ago

August 18, 2026

Newsbreak365_Admin

The National Youth Council of Nigeria, South-East Zone, has warned politicians against electoral manipulation ahead of the 2027 elections, urging youths to use their Permanent Voter Cards to reject incompetent leaders.

The NYCN South-East Vice-President, Dr Atigwe Ifeanyi, stated this on Monday during a press briefing in Enugu on lessons from the recent Osun governorship election and preparations for the 2027 polls.

While urging young Nigerians across the five states to participate actively in the electoral process and make informed choices based on candidates’ competence, character and track record, Ifeanyi noted that the Osun election had demonstrated the importance of allowing voters to freely determine who governs them through credible elections.

He commended the Independent National Electoral Commission for its efforts and praised President Bola Tinubu for allowing democratic institutions to function without undue interference from the Presidency.

He warned politicians against relying on electoral manipulation to secure political power.

“The era where politicians rely on electoral manipulation, intimidation, inducement or rigging to secure political power must come to an end.

“Today, we are saying clearly that the people are watching and the youths are also watching, as the era of taking the people’s mandate for granted is over,” he said.

The NYCN leader urged politicians seeking elective offices to present their records before the electorate and allow voters to assess their performance.

“Every politician seeking public office must present his or her scorecard before the electorate. Let the people examine what you have achieved, what you have failed to achieve, and what you intend to do differently,” he said.

Ifeanyi called on youths in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states to obtain, protect and use their PVCs wisely.

He announced that the council would commence grassroots advocacy under its “Operation Use Your PVC Well” campaign to educate young voters on their political rights and responsibilities.

“Your PVC is not merely a card. It is your instrument of political participation and power to change bad leadership and enthrone good leadership,” he said.

He urged youths to vote for candidates who could provide accountability, good governance, security, economic opportunities and infrastructure, rather than voting solely along party lines.

“We must be bold enough to vote out non-performing leaders and vote in candidates with demonstrable records of better performance and genuine commitment to public service,” he said.

Ifeanyi also called on INEC to strengthen its processes, technology, transparency and institutional independence ahead of 2027.

He warned politicians planning to rig elections to reconsider their ambitions, saying the youths would resist electoral malpractice through lawful democratic participation.

“Any political leader whose strategy for achieving power depends on rigging or subverting the will of the electorate should reconsider such a political ambition,” he said.

He added that the youths would not resort to violence but would use their votes and civic participation to influence political outcomes.

“Our resistance will be through our PVCs, our civic participation, lawful advocacy and our collective votes,” he said.

The NYCN also urged the South-East Development Commission to focus on infrastructure renewal, economic empowerment, reconstruction and sustainable development in the region.

Ifeanyi said the 2027 elections should mark a shift from “politics of sentiments” and personality to politics based on competence, character, capacity and measurable performance.

“We must move from politics of sentiments to politics of performance; from politics of personality to politics of competence; and from politics of promises to politics of measurable results,” he said.

Source: punchng.com

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Politics

VIDEO: #OSUNDECIDES2026! Angry Youths Storm INEC Office, Chant “Fadahunsi Ole”

Published

2 days ago

August 16, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

Some Osun youths gathered at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Osogbo, Saturday night, to monitor the collation of results from the governorship election.

In a video from the scene, the youths could be heard chanting “Fadahunsi ole, your plans will not work”.

The senator representing Osun East, Francis Fadahunsi, had earlier been captured in another video during the election, where he was seen confronting and allegedly threatening voters at his polling unit in the presence of a police officer.

The chant came as the collation of results from the election continued at the INEC headquarters.

Watch video below..

“Ole ! Ole ! Tiff, Tiff, your scope will not work, we know what you’re trying to do, you have to upload the result now”

Osun state residents don mount for INEC office 😭😂✨ pic.twitter.com/ux1mkhgfoP

— Oyindamola🙄 (@dammiedammie35) August 15, 2026