Jonathan Should Probe Murder Of ACN Members —Ogbeh

Following the gruesome murder of Mr. Charles Ayede, Action Congress of Nigeria stalwart last week by unidentified gunmen, a leader of the party and one time National Chairman of PDP, Chief Audu Ogbeh has expressed shock over incessant killing of ACN members in Benue State.

He urged President Goodluck Jonathan to take a closer look at the development before it gets out of control.

Ogbeh made this appeal in a telephone conversation with P.M.NEWS in Makurdi, after the murder of Ayede, the Senior Media Adviser to Prof. Steven Torkuma Ugbah, ACN governorship candidate in the 26 April governorship election.

“We are appealing to President Jonathan to take a closer look at what is happening in Benue because it is better to do that now than to try to stop a civil war which is absolutely unnecessary. There are people who believe that murdering people is a way of promoting themselves and there are many of such people in politics now,” he said.

Ogbeh, who strongly condemned the killing, lamented that Ayede’s murder was the seventh since election campaign started in Benue, stressing that the party would no longer stand by and watch while agents of darkness murder its members.

“What is more shocking is the callous indifference of some security agencies. When we present our report of these killings of our members, sometimes, they do absolutely nothing, sometimes as soon as we report and turn our back, the senior officers tell the junior ones to do nothing.”

While taking a swipe at the PDP-led government in the state, Ogbeh described them as “high level murderers who parade themselves as leaders thinking that by killing others, they would achieve great results in life.

“We say to them that the pathway which all evil men have followed ends in the pit of fire. We are warning that if this continues, there would be consequences. We are talking to everyone who has ears to hear that we do not believe in violence but we will not stand and watch steadily while people in authority pretend that they have no hand in it.”

While disclosing that from intelligence report gathered, 17 prominent members of the party are still on the hit list of those they either want to kill or maim, Ogbeh warned that the ACN will no longer sit and watch while the authorities pretend that they have no hand in it.

Ayede was killed last Friday on his way to Makurdi from Abuja. Two other occupants of the same vehicle, his cousin, Mr Adaa Maagbe and his security detail however cheated death as they narrowly escaped the bullets of their attackers.

Ayede’s death has sharply divivded the Tiv nation, following various reactions from members of the two prominent political parties in the state, PDP and ACN.

—Ubong George/Benue