{"id":170336,"date":"2025-07-20T11:52:45","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T10:52:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy"},"modified":"2025-07-20T12:54:26","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T11:54:26","slug":"okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy","title":{"rendered":"Okpebholo’s Remarks Against Obi Threaten Democracy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>Three civil society organisations have condemned the Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, over a viral video where he threatened Peter Obi, the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party.<\/p>\n

The groups, ImpactHouse Centre for Development Communication, Accountability Lab Nigeria, and Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) described the Governor\u2019s remarks as dangerous, undemocratic, and a clear threat to peace and political freedom.<\/p>\n

In the video, Governor Okpebholo was heard telling his supporters that Mr. Obi should not enter Edo State without his permission.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis security will never be guaranteed… Whatever happens to him, he will take it… I am the new sheriff in town,\u201d Gov Okpebholo said while addressing party supporters during the defection of a federal lawmaker to the All Progressives Congress (APC).<\/p>\n

The organisations said such statements are unacceptable, especially coming from a sitting Governor whose duty is to protect all citizens, regardless of their political views.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are not offhand political jests. They constitute a direct threat to the life and liberty of a fellow citizen. More disturbingly, these remarks come from a sitting Governor whose primary constitutional responsibility is to ensure the safety of all residents and visitors within his state, irrespective of political affiliation, ethnic origin, or belief.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch a public display of intolerance, authoritarian bravado, and politicisation of state power should deeply worry every Nigerian and every international stakeholder who invested in the survival of democratic governance in Nigeria.\u201d<\/p>\n

They warned that the Governor\u2019s words could incite political violence and intimidate opposition voices ahead of the 2026 governorship election in the state.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Peter Obi, like every Nigerian, has the right to move freely, express his opinion, and associate with any political group. No Governor or politician has the right to stop him or any other citizen from exercising these rights.<\/p>\n

\u201cSaying \u2018your security will not be guaranteed\u2019 suggests that the Governor is using the state\u2019s security forces for political purposes. This is a serious warning sign that the security agencies are no longer neutral and it also goes against Nigeria\u2019s commitment to protect people\u2019s rights under the African Charter on Human and Peoples\u2019 Rights,\u201d the group said in a statement jointly signed.<\/p>\n

The civil society organisations also raised concern that this is not the first time Mr. Obi has faced threats while visiting a state.<\/p>\n

They recalled a similar incident in Benue State in April 2025.<\/p>\n

They called on Governor Okpebholo to publicly withdraw his statement and apologise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want the Governor to take back his words and assure Nigerians that everyone, regardless of political party, is safe in Edo,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

They also called on the Nigeria Police and the State Security Service to investigate the threat and protect political figures facing intimidation.<\/p>\n

The group\u2019s further urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to take note of the development and include it in its election risk assessments for Edo.<\/p>\n

Finally, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was asked to launch an investigation into the matter.<\/p>\n

\u201cNigeria\u2019s democracy is imperfect, but threats like this bring us closer to its total derailment. Governor Okpebholo\u2019s statements are not mere political rhetoric; they represent a clear and present danger to democratic peace, political pluralism, and the rule of law in Nigeria. We remind the Governor and all public officeholders that power is held in trust, not as an entitlement, and that democratic societies thrive on competition, not coercion,\u201d the groups concluded.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Nigeria<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Nigeria. Three civil society organisations have condemned the Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, over a viral video where he threatened Peter Obi, the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party. The groups, ImpactHouse Centre for Development Communication, Accountability Lab Nigeria, and Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) described the Governor\u2019s remarks as dangerous, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":170335,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[427,254,12790],"class_list":["post-170336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-democracy","tag-nigeria","tag-okpebholo"],"yoast_head":"\nOkpebholo's Remarks Against Obi Threaten Democracy - Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Three civil society organisations have condemned the Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, over a viral video ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Okpebholo's Remarks Against Obi Threaten Democracy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Three civil society organisations have condemned the Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, over a viral video ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Nigeria\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-20T10:52:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-20T11:54:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/07\/sm_1752999962.999254.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1067\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Okpebholo’s Remarks Against Obi Threaten Democracy\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-20T10:52:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-20T11:54:26+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\"},\"wordCount\":590,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/07\/sm_1752999962.999254.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"democracy\",\"Nigeria\",\"Okpebholo\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/okpebholos-remarks-against-obi-threaten-democracy\",\"name\":\"Okpebholo's Remarks Against Obi Threaten Democracy - 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