The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) senatorial candidate for Benue South, Daniel Onjeh has rejected claims that Benue youths were responsible for the disruption of Peter Obi’s convoy during his visit to the state.
Onjeh said the people who blocked the convoy of the NDC presidential candidate were not representative of Benue youths.
He said those involved in the incident were mostly middle-aged men who used sticks and stones to stop Obi from proceeding to Yelwata in Guma Local Government Area.
Onjeh, who was with Obi when the incident happened, said it was wrong to describe the people involved as “Benue youths”.
His comments came amid growing controversy over the incident, which occurred on Tuesday along the Makurdi-Gboko Federal Highway.
Obi had travelled to Benue for a visit to Yelwata, a community that suffered a deadly attack in June 2025.
The former Anambra State governor had planned to meet families of victims, sympathise with those affected and see some survivors of the attack.
His convoy, however, was stopped around the airport axis in Makurdi after a group of people barricaded the road.
The confrontation disrupted movement along the road and eventually forced Obi to abandon the trip to Yelwata.
The police later confirmed that the convoy had been blocked and commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The command subsequently announced the arrest of 46 suspects in connection with the incident, while saying that the investigation was still ongoing.
But Onjeh has insisted that the incident should not be used to portray the youths of Benue as hostile to Obi.
He recalled the support the former Anambra governor received from voters in the state during the 2023 presidential election.
According to him, Obi secured 308,372 votes in Benue State in that election, coming narrowly behind the APC candidate, who recorded 310,468 votes.
Onjeh also pointed to the voting pattern in Benue South, where he said Obi received more than 95,000 votes, while the APC and PDP presidential candidates recorded about 40,000 votes each or less.
“Young people constituted a potent part of that voting force. So, how can the same young people who came out in their numbers and voted overwhelmingly for Peter Obi suddenly be presented as the people who mobilised with sticks and stones to prevent him from entering Makurdi? It simply does not add up,” Onjeh said.
“Peter Obi was not rejected by Benue, and he was certainly not rejected by Benue youths. His support in Benue is organic. It cannot be manufactured by government, and it cannot be extinguished by thuggery. Let nobody mistake the actions of a handful of thugs for the voice of Benue,” he added.
Onjeh said the reaction he had received from young people in the state also showed that they were unhappy with the incident.
He said several youths had contacted him to distance themselves from the action and reject the suggestion that they were responsible for stopping Obi.
According to him, some of those who contacted him also expressed their willingness to welcome Obi back to Benue.
Onjeh, a former President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), said the footage from the scene provided further evidence to support his position.
“Take a very close look at the footage and photographs that have circulated since the incident. Look carefully at the thugs carrying sticks and stones and those barricading the road. What you see substantially supports what these young people have been telling me: those men should not simply be labelled Benue youths.
“It also corresponds with what I saw with my own eyes. I was standing right beside Mr Peter Obi and saw these men at close range. They were predominantly middle-aged men, many visibly in their 40s and 50s,” he added.
The incident has created different accounts from the NDC and the Benue State Government.
The NDC accused suspected thugs of deliberately preventing Obi from reaching Yelwata.
The party also alleged that an aide to Governor Hyacinth Alia was involved in mobilising the group.
The state government, however, denied responsibility and said it was not aware that Obi was coming to Benue.
The governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, said the government was not informed about the visit and maintained that the state administration did not sponsor the youths who blocked the convoy.
The police also confirmed that its officers were aware of Obi’s movement and had provided security for the visit.
The command initially said the reason for the blockade was unknown and that investigations would determine what happened.
Onjeh, however, said the purpose of Obi’s trip had been misunderstood.
He maintained that the visit was not designed as a political rally.
According to him, Obi wanted to visit Yelwata quietly, meet families affected by the violence and offer his condolences.
“This was not a campaign visit. Peter Obi did not want noise. He did not want fanfare. If we wanted a political reception, we would have announced his coming, mobilised our members and supporters, and Makurdi would have known that he was coming,” he said.
Onjeh said the location where the convoy was stopped was also important.
He argued that the group blocked Obi shortly after the convoy left the airport, before he could reach populated areas of Makurdi.
According to him, Obi could have attracted a large crowd if he had reached places such as Wurukum Roundabout and residents became aware of his presence.
“He was stopped before he could get to the people. A barricade mounted by a handful of thugs at the exit from the airport cannot therefore be presented as the verdict of the people of Benue State,” Onjeh said.
The NDC candidate urged journalists and politicians to avoid describing the entire group as Benue youths.
He said those who took part in the action should be held responsible for their own conduct rather than allowing the incident to become a general accusation against young people in the state.
“Do not speak for Benue youths with stones. Do not speak for them with sticks. Do not speak for them with a barricade. Allow them to speak for themselves,” he said.
Onjeh also warned that political violence could create consequences for every political party if allowed to become normal during.
He said political disagreements should be settled through democratic means rather than attacks, intimidation or road blockades.
“Today it is Peter Obi. Tomorrow it could be the candidate of another political party. If we normalise thuggery simply because its immediate target is somebody we do not support, eventually nobody will be safe from the monster we have created.
“The answer to a candidate you do not support is not a stone. It is your vote,” he said.