News
30 feared dead, many missing as armed militia invade Benue community
A local in the area who spoke on condition of anonymity stated that the attack which started Tuesday morning and lasted till Wednesday left many severely injured and several others still missing while houses in the community were also not spared.
According to him, “the militia are suspected to be from Uffiom in the boundary between Ebonyi and Benue states. They invaded Okpobula at about 11am on Tuesday shooting and killing anything or anyone they saw. They also burnt houses and killed the domestic animals of their victims.
“The unprovoked attack continued till Wednesday because security agencies could not access the community on time. And as at last count over 30 corpses have been discovered in compounds and bushes.
“The search for more bodies and possible survivors is ongoing because many are still missing but the level of attack is unimaginable.”
Reacting to the development in a statement, the Chairman of Ado LGA, Chief James Oche described it as dastardly and inhuman.
Part of the statement read, “it is in the strongest terms that I condemn the attack on Okpobula Community of Apa Ward, Ado LGA which has led to killing of persons and destruction of properties. This is one attack too many.
“While we urge our people to remain calm and maintain law and order and be ready to defend themselves where need be, we call on security agencies to do the needful and bring the perpetrators to book.”
Condemning the attack, the Member representing Ado/Ogbadibo/Okpokwu Federal Constituency, Dr. Francis Agbo in a statement by his Media Adviser, Andrew Agbese, sympathized with the victims of the attack and called on security agencies to move swiftly to bring to book, those behind the coordinated attack.
Part of the statement read, “I condemn this wanton act of violence and needless bloodletting as it does not represent our beliefs in the sanctity of human lives. I share in the grief of the families of the victims and call on the security agencies to move swiftly to apprehend those behind the attack and ensure restoration of law and order.”
Also, the lawmaker representing Benue South Senatorial District, Senator Abba Moro who described the attack as one attack too many said the murder was carried out in the most beastial manner.
Senator Moro who decried the incessant attacks on the community wondered what the unrepentant aggressors stood to gain from the repeated mindless attacks and Killings of innocent people in the community.
In a statement by his Special Assistant on New Media, Eche-Ofun John, Senator Moro charged security agents to go after the perpetrators of the heinous crime and bring them to book.
He also appealed to the people to remain calm and corporate with the security agencied to deal with the situation, and not embarking on reprisals.
Confirming the attack, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Wale Abass who said security personnel have been deployed to the area stated that the crisis was more among Ebonyi people which spread to border communities on the Benue side.
He debunked the figure of casualties saying that no one except security men could access the troubled area, adding, “on the Benue side three people have been killed.”
…Governor trounces APC’s Oyebamiji with 66,252
The Independent National Electoral Commission has declared Governor Ademola Adeleke, of the Accord Party, the winner of the 2026 governorship election.
Announcing the final results, INEC Returning Officer, Prof. Joshua Ogunwole, the Vice- Chancellor of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti declared Adeleke winner and returned him elected.
Ogunwole announced that the Accord candidate secured 511,067 while his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, recorded 444,815 votes.
Adeleke trounced his major opponent with 66,252 votes amid wild jubilation by party supporters and other residents.
Details later…
The Osun State Governor and Accord Party candidate, Ademola Adeleke, has won 19 of the 30 Local Government Areas in Saturday’s governorship election, while the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Oyebamiji, secured victory in 11 LGAs.Download Offline Maps
The results are being collated and announced, with the Independent National Electoral Commission expected to make the official declaration after the completion of the process.
Adeleke recorded notable victories across several parts of the state, including Ede South, Ede North, Osogbo, Ife Central, Ife East, Ife North, Ilesa West, Odo Otin, Egbedore and Iwo.
Oyebamiji, however, won key LGAs including Ilesa East, Boripe, Irepodun, Obokun, Atakumosa West, Atakumosa East, Irewole, Isokan, Ola-Oluwa, Ife South and Olorunda.
The results announced so far show a closely contested election between the two major candidates, with the other candidates recording significantly lower figures in most of the LGAs.Download Interactive Maps
In Boluwaduro, Adeleke polled 7,118 votes against Oyebamiji’s 7,050. In Ede South, Adeleke secured 26,188 votes while the APC candidate scored 6,219.
Adeleke also won Ife North with 13,879 votes to Oyebamiji’s 9,613; Ilesa West with 16,196 against 12,756; Ifedayo with 7,427 against 6,836; and Ife Central with 21,171 against 15,913.
In Osogbo, Adeleke recorded 36,480 votes while Oyebamiji polled 30,474. He also won Oriade with 21,343 votes to 14,863 and Odo Otin with 18,003 votes against 15,435.
Other LGAs won by Adeleke included Ife East, where he scored 27,201 votes against Oyebamiji’s 18,600; Ifelodun, 21,107 against 18,396; Iwo, 27,085 against 19,660; Ede North, 35,427 against 10,283; Ila, 16,211 against 12,934; Ayedire, 11,073 against 9,910; Egbedore, 19,278 against 11,194; and Ayedaade, 16,681 against 15,719.Design Campaign Signs
Oyebamiji secured victories in Ilesa East with 16,208 votes against Adeleke’s 12,280; Boripe with 19,963 against 12,448; Irepodun with 15,713 against 14,504; and Obokun with 16,120 against 12,023.
He also won Atakumosa West, polling 10,037 votes to Adeleke’s 7,479; Irewole, 29,972 against 10,934; Atakumosa East, 9,936 against 7,872; Isokan, 14,063 against 13,765; Ola-Oluwa, 10,782 against 10,063; Ife South, 14,678 against 13,507; and Olorunda, 24,671 against 23,514.
The outcome places Adeleke ahead in the overall LGA tally, although the final result remains subject to the completion of the official collation and declaration by INEC.
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As of about 4:30pm on Saturday, INEC had uploaded 903 of the 3,763 expected polling-unit results to its Result Viewing Portal (IReV), representing about 24 per cent of the results expected across the state.
The emerging figures show Adeleke’s party making an early statement, particularly in Osogbo, where results from two polling units reviewed showed the Accord Party ahead of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
At Ward 4, Unit 39, Osogbo Local Government Area, Accord secured 65 votes, while the APC polled 43. The ADC recorded two votes, while ZLP, AA and AAC each scored one vote.
Another result from Ward 4, Unit 13, also in Osogbo, further tilted in favour of the Accord Party, which scored 134 votes against 75 votes for the APC. The ADC polled four votes, while ADP, AAC and APGA recorded one vote each.
The figures have placed Adeleke ahead in the early results emerging from the available uploads, although the lead cannot yet be treated as an indication of the final statewide outcome.
The race remains open, with thousands of polling-unit results still to be uploaded, verified and collated through the official INEC process.
The emerging results are nevertheless significant because they provide the first concrete picture of how the three leading contenders — Adeleke of the Accord Party, APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji and African Democratic Congress candidate Najeem Salaam — are performing in areas where results have been made available.
The early advantage for Adeleke comes after a tense election day marked by complaints over delays in the electronic transmission of results, alleged incidents of intimidation and vote-buying, as well as isolated reports of violence.
Adeleke had earlier expressed confidence in victory after casting his vote, while Oyebamiji also declared that he expected to win the contest. Salaam, meanwhile, raised concerns over the alleged non-recognition of some ADC agents and later reported an attack at his polling unit in Ejigbo.
Attention has now shifted from voting to the results battle, with parties and supporters closely monitoring the IReV portal and the official collation centres.
Following the conclusion of voting, presiding officers have commenced the sorting and counting of ballots at polling units, with results beginning to emerge from different parts of the state in Saturday’s governorship election.
Three major candidates in the Osun governorship election had expressed confidence in emerging victorious as the polls entered the sorting and collation stage, with each candidate and their supporters optimistic about securing the mandate of the electorate.
Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, on Saturday, expressed confidence in emerging victorious in the ongoing governorship election after casting his vote at Sagba Abogunde Ward 2, Unit 9, in Ede North Local Government Area.
Meanwhile, the African Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Osun State, Najeem Salaam, raised concerns over the alleged non-recognition of his party agents in several areas across the state during Saturday’s election.
Meanwhile, as at 4.30pm, a check by our correspondent to the IReV portal indicated that 903 out of 3,763 units have been uploaded
Results announced so far:
1. Ward 4, Unit 39, Osogbo Local Government Area
ZLP — 1
AA — 1
AAC — 1
ADC — 2
APC — 43
Accord Party — 65
Presiding Officer: Oyeranmi Deborah
2. Ward 4, Unit 13, Osogbo Local Government Area
Accord Party — 134
APC — 75
ADC — 4
ADP — 1
AAC — 1
APGA — 1
Presiding Officer: Mabel Olowolayemo
3. From Ede North, 007/02/07/29
Former Abia Speaker and APC House of Representatives candidate, Rt. Hon. Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji, says President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s combined use of military operations and community-based programmes is beginning to “reclaim Nigeria’s peace” after years of insecurity.
Orji argued that the administration since May 2023 has refused to treat force and prevention as competing options, and has instead pursued both simultaneously.
According to him, the kinetic component is the “hard edge of state power” involving the deployment of the Armed Forces, police, and intelligence agencies to directly confront criminal networks. He cited sustained operations against terrorist enclaves in the Northeast and raids on bandit camps in Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Niger states.
He also pointed to targeted rescues of kidnapped Nigerians, improved highway policing, aerial surveillance, and stronger intelligence coordination among the DSS, NIA, police and military, which he said had helped security agencies move from reaction to anticipation.
In an article titled “A Steady Hand in a Storm: President Tinubu’s Dual Strategy for Reclaiming Nigeria’s Peace,” Orji argued that the non-kinetic component tackles the root causes of insecurity through dialogue, economic empowerment, education, deradicalisation and rehabilitation.
“Peace held by soldiers alone is fragile. Peace owned by communities lasts,” he wrote. “One clears the ground, the other plants something better in its place.”
The former Speaker said the administration’s early directives included empowering the service chiefs, improving inter-agency coordination and strengthening funding and morale for frontline troops without political interference.
On the non-kinetic side, he said traditional rulers, religious leaders and civil society were being brought into security discussions because lasting peace cannot be decreed from Abuja alone.
He listed agricultural support, access to credit and rural infrastructure as part of efforts to address the economic desperation that can make young people vulnerable to recruitment by criminal groups.
Orji also defended deradicalisation and rehabilitation programmes for repentant fighters and victims of violent extremism, describing them as strategic tools rather than signs of weakness.
“This is not weakness. It is strategy. It reduces the pool of foot soldiers available to violent groups and gives communities a path back to normalcy,” he stated.
He said the dual approach was also being applied to communal conflicts through mediation, land-use dialogue and livelihood alternatives designed to address grievances before they turn violent.
In the Northwest, Orji said kinetic operations had helped reopen markets and grazing routes, while dialogue with farmer and herder associations was helping reduce reprisal attacks and establish early-warning mechanisms.
He said the approach also extended beyond Nigeria’s borders through ECOWAS and bilateral security partnerships, noting that criminal networks and traffickers do not respect national boundaries.
The APC chieftain further highlighted the use of hotspot mapping, drone surveillance and community reporting apps as part of what he described as a more data-driven approach to security, allowing resources to be directed toward emerging threats rather than only areas where attacks have already occurred.
Orji argued that security has direct economic implications, saying improved stability would strengthen confidence in agriculture, mining, logistics and other productive sectors.
“Jobs follow confidence,” he wrote.
He also stressed the importance of citizens becoming active partners in security through neighbourhood watches, tip lines and town-hall engagements.
“Citizens are not spectators,” he stated.
The former Speaker said what distinguishes the administration’s approach is patience and continuity, arguing that security gains are cumulative rather than theatrical and that institutions need time to learn, adapt and consolidate progress.
He also pointed to legal and constitutional measures, including improved equipment procurement and support for ongoing discussions around state policing, saying Nigeria’s size requires a layered security architecture.
While defending the administration’s direction, Orji acknowledged that the challenge remains.
“No honest assessment will claim the job is finished. Insecurity is hydra-headed and will test any government. But the direction is clear and the method is sound,” he said.
He called for continuity in the strategy, urging government to sustain pressure on criminal groups while deepening investments in vulnerable communities.
Orji said the ultimate objective should go beyond simply reducing attacks to creating conditions in which insecurity becomes increasingly difficult to sustain.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has set a template: firmness without recklessness, and compassion without naivety. In a nation as complex as ours, that balance is leadership,” Orji concluded.
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