Benue Govt Denies Role in Peter Obi Convoy Blockade

On Tuesday, the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate Peter Obi found his convoy blocked along Gboko Road near Makurdi Airport and the Nigerian Air Force Base in Benue State. His destination was Yelewata, where he intended to visit families who had lost relatives in a June 2025 mass killing.

Video from the location captured demonstrators voicing opposition to Obi's presence, with the obstruction lasting several hours and creating significant traffic congestion. Distancing itself rapidly from the episode, the Benue State Government issued a response through Chief Press Secretary Kula Tersoo, who stated the administration had not been notified beforehand of Obi's intended arrival.

Tersoo remarked that had state security personnel performed the stopping, the government could have explained what transpired. His statement suggested the obstruction stemmed from unaffiliated persons rather than representing official government action.

Obi remarked at the location that he had been halted following directives from a government official. However, the reporting available does not identify which official gave such orders or furnish further explanation.

An apparent contradiction exists between the government's stated non-involvement and Obi's claim of official direction, a matter left unresolved by existing accounts. Former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso responded with a statement condemning the blockade as damaging democratic values.

He urged the Benue administration to find and prosecute those behind the action and called on President Bola Tinubu to pressure governors against violating constitutional and legal principles. Kwankwaso contended that the demonstrators had been purposefully assembled with the goal of keeping Obi out of Makurdi.