A socio-cultural organisation, the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), has warned merchants of violence against crossing Benin red lines, amid the worsening security crisis in Nigeria.

The group issued the stern warning during a peaceful rally to some government institutions and the Oba of Benin’s Palace in Benin City, the Edo State capital, where it pledged to assist security agencies in fighting violent crimes.

In a statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Oba of Benin, Osaigbovo Iguobaro, it said: “Our fathers and mothers can hardly go to their farms without being kidnapped or killed. We are ready to support the development and protection of Edo State.”

Prince Sylvester Eweka, who led the group, stated that they could no longer fold their arms and watch with utter consternation as agents of destabilisation cast aspersions on Benin traditional institutions, emphasising that doomsday awaits evildoers in Edo land.

According to him, “We are here today due to the strange happenings in Edo land. It has been long, and we have been seeing it, but we do not want to take the law into our hands.”

He stated that the situation is becoming an embarrassment. “Some people now cast aspersions on Edo. Some of them feel that they have militants and that they can lord it over us. No. We will resort to them. That will no longer happen again. We cannot be in our community and be afraid,” Eweka said.

Other OPC leaders in the state, Comrade Alfa Suleiman and Tina Balogun, also pledged to support the fight against insecurity with their numerical strength and resist any form of aggression against the state, citing the historical antecedents of the Benin Kingdom.

Responding on behalf of the Benin Palace, Chief Uyi Okungbowa (the Ogua of Benin), said the palace had acknowledged their concerns and would communicate them to the appropriate authorities, while urging them to remain lawful and peaceful at all times.