Enugu LP guber candidate laments killing of party’s senatorial candidate

Labour Party senatorial candidate in Enugu Oyibo Chukwu.

The Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in Enugu State, Chijioke Edeoga, has described the murder of the party’s senatorial candidate for Enugu East, Oyibo Chukwu, as most devastating.

Edeoga, who spoke at Chukwu’s Enugu residence during a condolence visit, lamented that the state is back to its “dark days.” Chukwu was murdered last Wednesday, while returning from campaign. His killers also set his vehicle, his body and those in the vehicle on fire.

The development caused postponement of the senatorial election in the area by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
Edeoga said: “It is most gruesome, most painful, most traumatic, the termination of the life of an ebullient spirit; the life of a patriotic, the life of a statesman; he has served Nigeria; he was in the Constituent Assembly. He has served Nigeria in various platforms as All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) chieftain, as LP chieftain, as legal luminary, community leader.

“The nomination for the LP ticket was supposed to be an endorsement of all that he has done; but when he was on the course for victory, just on a final lap, he was terminated most abruptly and in a most painful way.” He said it was saddening that the late senatorial candidate was killed “in a manner that recalls days we thought we had left behind; now, we are back there; the days of murder and mayhem, as well as unnecessary waste of precious human lives.”

Edeoga said he could not understand why someone could terminate people’s lives and nothing happens. He, however, noted that even if there was a political angle to the assassination, “those people should not benefit from it; we have got INEC to postpone the election.”