By Peter Omopo
Former presidential candidate Peter Obi has condemned the disruption of the opening of the African Democratic Congress secretariat in Bakassi Local Government Area of Cross River State, describing the incident as an attack on democracy.
Obi made the condemnation in a statement shared on X on Sunday, where he expressed concern over the reported invasion of the party office by suspected political thugs.
According to him, the attack on the ADC office goes beyond a political disagreement and reflects a worrying decline in democratic standards in Nigeria.
He said when thugs can storm a party office, destroy property and disperse supporters without facing arrest, it shows how dangerously low the country’s democratic values have fallen.
The former governor of Anambra State warned that declining leadership standards and tolerance for political misconduct could push the country towards violence.
Obi also criticised a situation where individuals with questionable qualifications are allowed to contest for public office, warning that such trends send troubling signals to society.
He cautioned that fraud and violence cannot produce genuine leadership and would only result in chaos that could ultimately affect both present and future generations.
The development followed the disruption of a planned opening of the ADC secretariat in Bakassi on Saturday when suspected political thugs reportedly stormed the venue of the event.
Witnesses said the attackers dispersed party supporters and destroyed items set up for the ceremony, including canopies, chairs, loudspeakers and other equipment.
A video circulating on social media showed a group of youths dismantling the event setup while shouting that the party would not be allowed to operate in the council area.
In the footage, a man believed to be leading the group was heard instructing others to scatter the materials, claiming the party had not contributed to the development of the area.
Confirming the incident, the Cross River State Police Command described the attackers as hoodlums and said officers were deployed to restore order.
The Bakassi incident occurred months after Obi and some chieftains of the African Democratic Congress were reportedly attacked by suspected thugs in Benin City, Edo State.
The attack happened shortly after Obi, former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress John Odigie-Oyegun and other party figures returned from the ADC secretariat where the 2023 Labour Party governorship candidate in Edo State, Olumide Akpata, was formally welcomed into the party.
Following that incident, the Department of State Services announced the arrest of a suspect, identified as Udeme Sunday Stephen, who was believed to be linked to the attack on Obi and other ADC leaders in the Edo State capital.
