Police have arrested the National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure.
Protesting the arrest, which it said was instigated by expelled party members working with the state government, LP alleged that the combined team of DSS and police officers who carried out the arrest had publicly assaulted the National Chairman.
Abure was arrested in Benin City alongside Kelly Ogbaloi, the LP Chairman for Edo State on Wednesday.
The party spokesman, Obiora Ifoh, said both men were arrested after having a meeting with a team of Department of State Services (DSS) and police officers in the state capital.
Spokesman of the police for Zone 5, Tijani Momoh, said Abure was arrested over a petition in a case of attempted murder, conspiracy to commit dangerous harm.
Momoh said: “I wish to confirm the arrest of the factional Chairman of the Labour Party, Mr Julius Abure, and I think three or four others due to a written petition that was endorsed to the AIG Benin from the office of the inspector-general of police.
“So based on that petition he was arrested and the investigation is ongoing. He was also in possession of a firearm; a shotgun and three rounds of live ammunition.
“All details will be provided as the investigation continues.”
According to Momoh, the police did not assault the LP Chairman in the process of arresting him.
The police spokesperson said some persons tried to prevent Abure’s arrest, which led to an altercation between them and police operatives.
He submitted: “Some policemen or some people that were assigned to him tried to prevent the police from carrying out a lawful arrest.
“The police has powers to carry out lawful arrests and some people tried to prevent the police from doing that.”
In reaction to the development, LP National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said in a statement that Abure was arrested over a protest letter by an expelled member of the party loyal to the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the party.
“The Labour Party on Tuesday had a very successful delegate election in Benin ahead of the Party Primaries scheduled to hold on Friday. The party chairman only this morning along with party governorship aspirants also kept a scheduled security briefing with the Department of the State Security,” Ifoh said.
“Abure was however arrested after the meeting by a combined team of DSS and Police officers. Abure, Ogbaloi and their aides were also manhandled.
“Effort by some party leaders to have access to the Zone 5 headquarters was turned down due to the huge crowd of party supporters who were expressing their displeasure over the arrest of Abure.
“However, a Police source informed the party officials and other governorship aspirants at the gate of the police headquarters that the arrest was in connection to a protest letter by one of the expelled member of the party loyal to Apapa dissident camp.
“The source also confirmed that the arrest was not unconnected to the ongoing party primary and the possible candidate that will emerge which the state government is vehemently opposed to.
“He informed that the arrest was to frustrate the primary process and possibly interrupt the party’s participation in the governorship election.”
