The Benue State Government has denied having prior knowledge of Peter Obi’s visit to the state, rejecting allegations by the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) that he was blocked from accessing the state by thugs allegedly linked to Governor Hyacinth Alia.

Obi visited Benue on Tuesday, September 8, saying his purpose was to sympathise with victims of the 2025 Yelewata massacre and not to campaign.

However, his convoy was reportedly blocked along Gboko Road by a group of people who chased the vehicles as they attempted to gain access to the state.

Obi subsequently alleged that he was prevented from reaching the affected community by thugs allegedly led by one of the governor’s aides.

But in a statement, Tersoo Kula, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Alia, dismissed the allegations as unfounded, describing them as an attempt to tarnish the governor’s reputation and drag the state government into what he called an internal political matter within the NDC.

Kula said the Alia administration had no prior knowledge of Obi’s visit and had no reason to prevent him from entering the state.

He added that Obi did not pose any threat to the governor and that, had the government been aware of his visit, the appropriate security agencies would have been available to coordinate his movement and address any security concerns.

The governor’s spokesman also accused Obi of failing to comply with established security protocols by visiting the state without formally notifying the relevant authorities.

“It is therefore curious that an individual presenting himself as a presidential candidate could arrive in a state without the relevant security authorities being formally informed of his movement,” Kula said.

According to him, a visit by a presidential candidate would ordinarily require security coordination involving the Commissioner of Police and other relevant security agencies.

Kula further rejected Obi’s attempt to link the incident to Governor Alia, describing the allegations as fabrications designed to create a political controversy.

He said Alia remained a peace-loving leader who was opposed to thuggery and neither engaged, patronised nor deployed thugs as instruments of governance or security.

The government, he added, would remain focused on its responsibilities and would not be distracted by what it described as attempts to manufacture political controversies.

“Benue remains open to legitimate visitors, political actors and all Nigerians who come in peace,” Kula said.