Members of the Edo State House of Assembly have called on the Oba of Benin, Omo n’Oba Erediawawu to grant them his protection in the face of deadly attacks on them by alleged political thugs early October at their official residence in Benin and rumoured follow up individual targeting.
During a plenary discussion in the House, one of legislators, Folly Ogedengbe, the Chief Whip, said he had it on good authority that there was another plot by the masterminds of the attack to trace the lawmakers to their respective constituencies, and urged the assembly leadership to inform the Oba of Benin that the “lives of the lawmakers were in danger.”
Ogedengbe said the attackers “operated like Boko Haram” insurgents.
Ogedengbe, Speaker under “matter of urgent public importance”, Ogedengbe said, “The armed thugs came in a Boko Haram style and shot sporadically at every building they saw.”
Others accused the Peoples Democratic Party leadership in the state of sponsoring the mayhem and alleged that the state police command was complicit in the crime.
He added that his 85-year-old mother was in his home when the hoodlums shot his bedroom windows and at every door in his apartment for over 25 minutes.
The lawmaker added, “I thought the world was coming to an end. But the Almighty God saved me and my family. In fact, my 85-year-old mother was inside my home with me.
“The attack was initiated by PDP leaders and some of them are already celebrating their victory on television.”
In his contribution, Adjoto Kabiru said the attackers came “in a commando-like manner” in batches.
He said, “I saw them from a vantage position because my house is just about 500 metres from the main gate of the Legislators’ Quarters.
“I saw them all. They came in batches and were led by policemen. As they were entering, somebody was giving them order by pointing at houses.
“One of the police officers wore a bulletproof vest, boots and black trousers.
“What is worrisome is that the police have degenerated into the military wing of the PDP.”
Another legislator, Michael Ohio-Ozomo, described the scene of the incident as a battleground.
He specifically lamented the level of destruction visited on Ogedengbe’s home by the hoodlums and called on politicians to embrace peace.
He said, “When I got into the quarters, I stopped by the Chief Whip’s residence. It was like a war zone. I saw spent cartridges and bullets on floor. Looking at the level of destruction, I asked myself: ‘Is this what we are supposed to be doing to ourselves? That a man I spoke with only a few minutes had gone through such an ordeal?
“It’s about time that we asked ourselves, ‘Is this the kind of politics that we want to play?’
The Speaker, Uyi Igbe, who also lamented the police failed woefully when they failed to confront the attackers.
“I think what is more worrisome is the fact that the police were aware that this attack will take place and rather than beef up security, they actually withdrew security and left only one policeman there.
“So, it shows the police complicity in the attack. One wonders if writing a petition to the police would not amount to wasting our time. Instead of being Nigeria Police Force, it’s now PDP Police Force and it’s unfortunate. I think something has to be done.”
The Deputy Speaker, Victor Edoror, said the attackers threatened to revisit them and urged his colleagues to be on the alert.
The Majority Leader of the assembly, Philip Shaibu, claimed that the thugs were mandated by their sponsors to kill at least two lawmakers in the quarters.
He said, “The attack was planned in the office of a PDP chieftain and when the meeting was over, the Police were adequately informed. The mandate they had was to kill at least two of us.
“As we speak, all those that were involved in this attack are still on the streets walking freely.’’
The majority leader, who claimed that his son and himself were hurt in the attack, advised that a petition be sent to President Goodluck Jonathan, the Inspector-General of Police, the office of the State Security Service and the military formation in the state.
The only female member of the assembly, Elizabeth Ative, said she was about travelling out of Benin with her uncle when the attackers arrived.
“When we ran into the building before my own, we noticed that it had also been invaded. I saw all of the attackers. They came from the PDP. I know all of them.
The lawmaker, who called for the removal of the state police commissioner, challenged the PDP to test its popularity at the polls.
He said, “It was after the damage had been done that the police came; the governor even got there before the Commissioner of Police.
“If the President will not question the commissioner of police or replace him, then he is inviting trouble.’’
After their contributions, the lawmakers passed a motion raised by Ogedengbe calling on the Federal Government, the Inspector-General of Police and the DSS to investigate and prosecute all those involved in the incident.
Subsequently, the Speaker ordered that a clean copy of the resolution be sent to the office of the President, the IG, the AIG (Zone 5), the state police commissioner, the state Director and the Director-General of the DSS.
Also to receive the resolution is the state governor, the Oba of Benin and the NSA.
About 36 cars and seven buildings were vandalised by the thugs.
Meanwhile, the Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba N’Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, has called on politicians in the state to “refrain from politics of bitterness”.
The monarch, who expressed worry over the rate of political thuggery and violence across the country by supporters of political parties, urged political leaders to “be mindful of the fact that only the living can play politics and not the dead.”
“As political leaders, you are supposed to show good examples for the younger generations to emulate, rather than recruit them as thugs,” the royal father advised in a statement by the Information Office of the Benin Traditional Council.
The Oba directed the Enogie, chiefs, Igiohen and Edionwere in Benin Kingdom to pray for peaceful co-existence of Nigerians.