Victor EzejaLabour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, has condemned the killing of the party’s senatorial candidate for Enugu East Senatorial District, Barr Oyibo Chukwu.
Oyibo, a former chairman of Nigeria Bar Association in Orji River Division, Enugu State, was killed by assailants alongside eight others inside his sienna car branded with Labour Party insignia used for campaigns.
They were said to be returning from a campaign trip in Agbani on Wednesday evening when they met their untimely death in the hands of hoodlums along Amechi road in Enugu South Local Government Area of the state.
The hoodlums reportedly shot him and razed the vehicle with petrol bomb.
A video that went viral showed the vehicle in flames, and apparently roasted them inside.
Obi in statement posted on his verified Twitter handle on Thursday, decried the killing, lamenting that the continuous “mindless bloodletting that occurs in the nation is beyond depressing.”
He stated that human life must remain precious irrespective of political party affiliation and warned that such dangerous trend must not continue to be encouraged in the country.
He said: “I received with deep shock and sadness, the news of the painful killing of Barr Oyibo Chukwu, the Senatorial Candidate of the Labour Party, for Enugu East Senatorial Zone.
“I strongly condemn the killing of Barr Chukwu in its entire entirety. Human lives must remain precious, irrespective of political affiliation. The mindless bloodletting that occurs in the nation is beyond depressing. We must not continue to toe this dangerous path.
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The LP presidential candidate condloled with the bereaved family, Enugu East Senatorial Zone and Labour Party in the state over the unfortunate loss.
Obi also called on law enforcement agents to conduct proper investigations and fish out the perpetrators for prosecution.
“Enough of the killings, now is time for healing. I sincerely condole with the bereaved family, the Enugu East Senatorial Zone and our dear Labour Party family, for this painful loss.
“I call on law enforcement agents to fish out and bring to book, the perpetrators of this crime, and ensure that Nigerians freely exercise their civic duties without intimidation.”
Also, the driver of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), House of Representatives candidate for Enugu South and North constituency, Hon Offor Chukwuegbo, was killed along the same Amechi axis.
The vehicle belonging to Chukwuegbo used for campaign which he was driving at that point was also set ablaze in the incident.
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Enugu Police Suspects IPOB Over the Killing
Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police, Enugu State Command, CP Ahmed Ammani, has condemned the attack and ordered a discreet investigation and manhunt for the killers of Oyibo Chukwu and others.
In a statement on Thursday confirming the incidents, the state police command said only the LP candidate and his male Personal Assistant were killed in the attack on them at Eke-Otu Amechi-Awkunanaw on Wednesday night.
The statement released by the state police spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, also confirmed that the driver of a PDP campaign vehicle was burnt to death at Topland by Ebony Paint Road, Amechi-Awkunanaw.
The police command said the attacks were carried out by individuals the police described as “subversive criminal elements suspected to be IPOB/ESN renegades.”
The statement reads in part: “Meanwhile, preliminary investigations into the incidents show that the armed hoodlums, operating in a tricycle, attacked a PDP campaign Mini Bus at Topland by Ebony Paint Road, Amechi-Awkunanaw Enugu and used a petrol bomb to set it ablaze, burning to death its driver, simply identified as one KC Great (male).
“In a similar fashion, another set of the same armed assailants, operating in a Hilux vehicle, attacked and set ablaze the campaign vehicle of the Labour Party, at Eke-Otu Amechi-Awkunanaw Enugu, burning to death the Party’s Senatorial Candidate for Enugu East Senatorial District, Barr. Oyibo Chukwu (male) and his Personal Assistant (male) with him in the vehicle.
“However, the miscreants were repelled by Security Operatives while attempting to also attack the convoy of the Governorship Candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) at Eke, Agbani, Nkanu West LGA.”
The state police spokesperson said the Commissioner visited scenes of the incidents on Wednesday and assured that the command would step up measures to ensure a peace election across the state.
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He added that the CP equally expressed condolences to the bereaved families.
“The Commissioner, while strongly condemning the barbaric acts, has commiserated with the Parties and family members of the deceased, vowing to ensure that the perpetrators are fished out and made to face the full wrath of the law. He, therefore, reaffirms the undiluted commitment of the Police and other Security Agencies to emplace adequate security for peaceful and credible elections in the State, while urging the citizens not to succumb to the cowardly antics of the hoodlums, which is aimed at creating fear and to disrupt the electoral process,” Ndukwe added.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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