Presidential candidate Peter Obi was prevented from entering Benue State to pay condolence to the victims of a bandits attack.
Let us pause and let it sink in.
Since when did grief require a permit? Since when did mourning the dead become a security risk?
Nigeria’s politics is devoid of hygiene. It is now a game where the living are blocked from standing with the dead, because of logo and party color.
Therefore, no man has monopoly of violence. And let the Governor of Benue State and President Tinubu beware, because Surugede is not a dance for naming-ceremony. It is a dance for war.
Violence is never the answer. But neither should peace be mistaken for weakness. When your constitutional rights are challenged, stand firm, remain lawful, and never allow yourself to be treated as though you have no voice. Section 41 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of movement. A condolence visit is not a campaign rally. Even if it is, the Constitution guarantees it, and the window for campaign is open.
Peter Obi, there are words for this moment. Aristotle said, “There is no great change without a touch of madness.” Yet Miyamoto Musashi also said, “Good men must know violence, lest evil be fluent in it.”
This is not about Obi. This is about us. If we normalize barring leaders from cemeteries today, tomorrow we will be barred from our own villages.
Benue is bleeding. The least we can do is allow compassion to enter.
Block the terrorists. Don’t block humanity.
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