By Charles Pemu 
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, is facing mounting criticism over remarks suggesting Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, must seek clearance before visiting the state comments widely interpreted as a threat to Obi’s safety.
Renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Obi’s supporters under the Obidient Movement have pushed back, warning that the governor’s statement violates constitutional rights and sets a dangerous precedent.
While Falana urged Obi to seek immediate legal redress for the “illegal threat,” the ADC labelled it part of an emerging pattern of opposition suppression by APC governors. Obidient Movement leader, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, called the claim both “false and dangerous.”
Okpebholo, speaking at a defection rally last Friday, insisted that high-profile individuals like Obi must obtain prior security clearance before public engagements in Edo. Critics slammed the statement as an unconstitutional overreach and veiled intimidation.
In a clarification issued by Chief Press Secretary Fred Itua, the governor’s office maintained the directive was a security protocol, not hostility.
“The governor never issued any threat. As the Chief Security Officer of the state, he is constitutionally obligated to protect lives and ensure public safety during high-profile visits,” the statement read.
Okpebholo also referenced past attacks on clergy in Edo to justify the protocol and warned against politically motivated donations that might put vulnerable institutions at risk.
The governor took a swipe at Obi, referencing a controversial 2013 incident involving Nasir El-Rufai in Anambra. But Tanko refuted the claim, clarifying that it was the then PDP-led federal government, not Obi, that restricted El-Rufai’s movements.
“Governor Okpebholo is peddling falsehood. I was in Anambra during that election as IPAC chairman. Obi had no power to detain anyone,” Tanko said, citing documented evidence and eyewitness testimony.
The ADC’s interim Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, accused APC governors of attempting to muzzle opposition voices.
“Nigeria is not a one-party state. No governor has the right to stop any citizen from travelling freely across the country,” he warned.
Falana added that Governor Okpebholo’s remarks infringe on Section 33 of the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, urging swift legal action by Obi to deter future abuses.