Benue youths in their thousands on Thursday stormed major streets of Makurdi to protest against the move to militarize the state in the coming Governorship and State Assembly elections.
The youths carried placards, some of which read “we say no to the militarization of Benue”, where was the military when our people were butchered by armed herdsmen”, “don’t use the military to rig Benue elections”, APC doesn’t drag the military into politics.”
Recall that the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) had alleged that the Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government plans to unleash mayhem during Saturday’s Governorship and Houses of Assembly elections.
The founding member of the Movement Against Fulani Occupation, MAFO, Pastor Dave Ogbole, who spoke on behalf of the youths said that they were aware of the plot to send top military personnel for the coming Saturday election.
Imo Ugochinyere, CUPP national spokesman, in a statement on Wednesday, said Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Sokoto, Anambra, Rivers, Taraba, Abia, Gombe and Delta States are to be “flooded with Mobile Police Officers from various parts of the country specifically for the purpose of helping the APC rig the elections and return the states to the APC.”
“In furtherance, the APC have resolved that polls will be shifted or disrupted in Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Enugu, Ebonyi, Benue and Taraba States so that the military can concentrate on those states on the rescheduled dates.”
