MAKURDI, Nigeria — A group of men carrying sticks blocked the convoy of Peter Obi, the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate, shortly after he arrived in Benue State on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, according to videos released by a member of his team.
The footage showed men occupying Gboko Road and pursuing vehicles in the convoy as they tried to enter the state.
Esther Umoh, Obi’s photographer, said the obstruction occurred after the delegation left the airport and began travelling towards the town.
“This is Gboko Road; the entire road is blocked. We just touched down, and this is the only road from the airport into town,” Umoh said.
“They said Peter Obi is not coming into the town to see the people he wanted to see. This is not acceptable. We should be able to do politics without going this low.”
The videos did not establish the identities and affiliations of the men. The initial account of the incident presented no evidence identifying those who organised the blockade.
The confrontation occurred as political parties and presidential candidates increased their activities ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
Crazy stuff happening now in Benue pic.twitter.com/liCWBFMJSs
— Esther Umoh (@EstherUmoh10) September 8, 2026
An Earlier Benue Visit Was Halted
The incident followed an earlier dispute between Obi and the Benue State Government over a humanitarian visit that he planned in April 2025.
During that trip, Obi intended to pay a courtesy call on Governor Hyacinth Alia and visit a nursing school in Gboko and camps accommodating internally displaced people.
Obi had travelled from Plateau State, where he visited displaced residents in Bokkos, met children affected by violence and donated N7.5 million.
While he was proceeding towards Makurdi, the Benue government issued an advisory warning high-profile individuals against entering the state for visits capable of attracting public or political gatherings without prior approval.
The notice published by the state government was signed by Tersoo Kula, Alia’s chief press secretary. It said the governor was not expecting an “August visitor” and was attending high-level meetings concerning matters affecting the state.
The government said it could not guarantee the safety of prominent visitors whose trips had not been coordinated with the governor’s office. It also required people seeking to visit displacement camps to obtain written permission from the Benue State Emergency Management Agency.
Obi said he had repeatedly tried to contact Alia before travelling but was unable to reach him. According to Obi, the governor’s aide-de-camp promised that Alia would return his call, but the promised conversation did not take place.
In a statement on X, Obi said his security team received the government advisory when his convoy reached Akwanga. He said the governor’s aide-de-camp subsequently sent him the same document.
Obi questioned how the advisory came to contain details of an itinerary that he said had been disclosed only to the governor’s aide and security officials. He alleged that the timing and contents of the statement indicated that it was intended to stop his visit.
The state government presented the restrictions as security and coordination measures rather than an attempt to prevent humanitarian assistance.
Obi halted that journey in Akwanga and returned to Abuja. He maintained that the proposed visits to the nursing school and displacement camps were humanitarian and not part of a political campaign.
The latest obstruction therefore marks the second reported disruption of an attempted visit by Obi to Benue since the disagreement over access and security arrangements in 2025.
