Unidentified assailants attacked the Edo State secretariat of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Benin City on Wednesday evening, shattering windows and damaging interior items before residents prevented them from setting the building on fire.
The incident occurred at the party’s office on Ogbelaka Street. According to police, the attack was reported around 8 p.m. Officers deployed to the scene found “malicious damage to party flags and two shattered windows.” Security has since been reinforced in the area to prevent further violence, while a full investigation is underway to identify and arrest the perpetrators.
ADC State Chairman Kennedy Odion confirmed the assault, stating the suspected political thugs intended to raze the secretariat. “They destroyed all the windows and other items in the building before ADC sympathisers in the area came to our rescue,” he said. Mr. Odion alleged the attack was politically motivated, claiming “some politicians want the ADC to leave the state so that no other political party will contest the 2027 election with them.” He emphasised that elections require broad participation and that freedom of association is a constitutional right that cannot be coerced.
The ADC is a registered political party in Nigeria with a presence in several states. Its leadership asserts the party plans to field candidates in the 2027 general elections, a timeline now framed by this incident as a potential point of tension. While the police have not named any suspects, the Edo State Police Command spokesperson, Eno Ikoedem, assured the public that operatives were actively investigating. The party has formally reported the case to security agencies, urging swift justice.
The attack highlights the volatile atmosphere that sometimes precedes election cycles in parts of Nigeria, where smaller parties occasionally report intimidation. For now, the immediate focus is on the police probe and restoring normalcy to the ADC’s operations in Edo State, a critical step ahead of the nation’s next electoral contest.
