Police fire tear gas to disperse men who attacked supporters of the opposition party National Democratic Congress (NDC) during a town hall meeting in Ikeja, capital of the State.
Armed men attacked supporters and journalists at a campaign event for Nigerian opposition candidate Peter Obi, witnesses told journasits, as the country prepares for presidential elections in two months.
Elections in Africa’s most populous country are repeatedly marred by violence, often carried out by “thugs” — as they’re locally called — with links to rival politicians.
Videos on social media showed men wielding sticks, machetes and axes rushing into a hall of Obi supporters in Lagos, Nigeria’s economic capital, dispersing the crowd.
Said Osa Director, Spokesman of Nigeria Democratic Congress: “Nobody is going to intimidate us, we will exercise our right to participate in this election”.
He blamed the violence on the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Obi came in third in the 2023 elections, behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who is seeking a second term in the January 16 vote.
Said Felix Morka APC spokesman: “When a person makes an allegation, it is their duty to substantiate and provide evidence”.
Thursday’s violence came after the NDC had previously blamed a slew of event cancellations on the government, which it said was pressuring venue owners — claims the government denied.
Mansur Ibrahim, a Nigerian photojournalist at the scene, said a large group of men barged into the venue ahead of Obi’s arrival.
Stated Ibrahim: “They actually came into the hall, broke all the entrance doors and the glass walls.
“The NDC guys repelled them, chased them out of the hall into the road, and they started throwing stones at each other in the middle of the road”.
Police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd as people chanted “APC must go”.
Stated an NDC supporter said in an interview clip shared in media: “See my head, they broke my head with (a) bottle but it’s nothing, I’m still standing”.
His forehead was wrapped with bloodied bandages.
The unnamed man blamed the attack on supporters of the APC who he said were trying to intimidate the opposition, “thinking that we will back down”.
Another journalist from TheCable, Sam Adebanjo, was beaten and attacked with an axe, and had his equipment stolen, his media outlet reported.
Thursday’s attack came as the second-place finisher from 2023 polls, Atiku Abubakar, faces legal challenges over his 2027 candidacy.
Abubakar’s campaign outfit has blamed the government for being behind the lawsuit, which the ruling party denies.
