BENIN – The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday traded blame over the shooting incident at the Edo State governorship election petition tribunal in Benin.
Gunmen suspected to be political thugs disrupted the proceeding at the tribunal, shouting “Give us our mandate” while shooting sporadically.
The shooting created panic with lawyers, members of the tribunal and others at the proceedings fleeing for safety.
The APC Chairman in Edo State, Jarret Tenebe, in a statement described the incident as an “unacceptable act of violence that undermined the sanctity of the judicial process.”
He accused PDP supporters of carrying out what he described as a dastardly act.
Tenebe described the tribunal as a sacred space where justice was meant to be administered impartially.
He said: “Any act of violence within its walls undermines the very foundation of our legal system and threatens the safety of all involved.
“Regardless of political affiliation, resorting to violence to resolve disputes is never justifiable.
“We must all condemn such actions in the strongest possible terms.
“Violence has no place in a civilised society, and those responsible for this heinous act must be brought to justice swiftly and without exception.”
However, in a counter-statement, the PDP distanced itself from the shooting incident.
The PDP chairman in the state, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, described the incident as yet another in the series of clandestine efforts by the APC to frustrate the legal process and tarnish the image of the opposition party.
He said: “The APC in Edo, who are clearly scared of justice, have continued their devious ploy to frustrate our party from reclaiming the mandate duly given to us by the good people of Edo in the last governorship election at the tribunal.
“They have now resorted to deploying thugs disguised in PDP-branded attire to disrupt the legal process while pointing accusing fingers at our party.”