Gunshots disrupted the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal which began hearing on Wednesday in Benin City, the state capital.
Hoodlums were also reportedly seen outside the turbo-charged venue of the tribunal where gunshots rent the air, leaving people to scamper for safety.
The tribunal had commenced hearing on the petitions challenging the September 21, 2024, Edo governorship election where Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared as the winner. The main challenger at the tribunal is Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The electoral umpire INEC had declared Okpebholo winner of the poll with 291,667 votes, Ighodalo was said to have polled 247,274 votes while Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party (LP) came a distant third in the race with 22,763 votes.
Meanwhile, the PDP and the APC in the South-South state have traded words over the shooting incident at the tribunal venue.
APC Chairman in the state, Emperor Jarret Tenebe, alleged that the “disturbing and unacceptable” incident was carried out by members of the PDP.
He said, “The Tribunal is a sacred space where justice is meant to be administered impartially. Any act of violence within its walls undermines the very foundation of our legal system and threatens the safety of all involved.
“Regardless of political affiliation, resorting to violence to resolve disputes is never justifiable. We must all condemn such actions in the strongest possible terms.
“Violence has no place in a civilized society, and those responsible for this heinous act must be brought to justice swiftly and without exception.”
However, the Chairman of the Edo PDP Caretaker Committee, Anthony Aziegbemi, refuted the claims of the APC, accusing the party of sponsoring thugs to disrupt the tribunal.
Aziegbemi said, “The APC is clearly scared of justice, and have continued their devious ploy to frustrate our party, from reclaiming the mandate duly given to us by the good people of Edo State in the last governorship election at the Tribunal and have now resorted to deploying thugs disguised in PDP-branded attire to disrupt the legal process, while pointing accusing fingers at our party.
“We strongly dissociate ourselves from the shooting incident that occurred today at the venue of the Governorship Election Tribunal in Benin City, the Edo State capital, and want to unequivocally state that this shameful incident is yet another in the series of clandestine efforts by the APC to frustrate the legal process and tarnish the image of our party.”
