Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
A team of journalists covering the formal defection of a former chieftain of the All Progressives Congress to the Peoples Democratic Party in Ebonyi State narrowly escaped being burnt alive on Saturday, August 1, 2026, after suspected political thugs attacked their branded official vehicle in an attempt to set it ablaze. The incident occurred at Idembia in Ezza South Local Government Area, where members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists Correspondents’ Chapel had gathered to cover the defection of Barrister Ifeanyi Nworie, a former APC chieftain who was returning to the PDP after defecting to the APC last year.
Eyewitnesses told journalists that the event was initially scheduled to hold at a village square by the roadside, but suspected thugs, reportedly led by an Abakaliki-based lawyer, Friday Agbom, stormed the venue, destroyed chairs and other equipment, and forced organisers to relocate the ceremony to Nworie’s private residence. However, the attackers reportedly followed participants to the new venue, barricaded the access road, and assaulted guests arriving for the programme. The journalists, who arrived in the Correspondents’ Chapel's branded official vehicle, were among those targeted. Witnesses said the attackers, numbering over 100, repeatedly struck the vehicle and attempted to force its doors open. When they failed to gain access, some of the suspected thugs allegedly began searching for petrol with the intention of setting the vehicle ablaze while the journalists were still inside. The journalists escaped only after the driver swiftly manoeuvred the vehicle away from the scene.
One of the journalists, speaking on the condition of anonymity, described the ordeal as a "narrow escape from death." The reporter said: “They were hitting the vehicle badly and looking for fuel to burn us inside. If not for the driver’s quick thinking, we wouldn’t be here to tell this story.” In the ensuing chaos, the thugs also descended on a passerby who was on the road and beat him until he fell into the bush. At least 20 PDP supporters were reportedly attacked during the violence, with eight persons sustaining varying degrees of injuries and rushed to hospital for treatment. The attackers were reportedly wearing T-shirts bearing the photograph of a serving federal lawmaker, further fuelling suspicions of political sponsorship.
In a separate incident, 10 journalists travelling to the venue were allegedly intercepted and attacked by the suspected thugs. The journalists were travelling in a vehicle branded “Correspondents’ Chapel, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ)” when the attackers intercepted them and smashed parts of the vehicle while attempting to obtain fuel to set it ablaze. The driver managed to escape, averting what could have been a tragic loss of life.
Reacting to the incident at a press conference in Abakaliki on Sunday, August 2, 2026, the Ebonyi State PDP Chairman, Chukwuma Igwe, condemned the attack, describing it as "provocative and an assault on democracy." Igwe alleged that the incident was part of a wider pattern of intimidation against PDP supporters in the state ahead of the 2027 general elections. He claimed that PDP supporters had faced threats in recent weeks, while some vehicles had been damaged and several people assaulted with dangerous weapons. Igwe called on the Police, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and other security agencies to protect citizens and ensure a level playing field for all political parties.
Nworie, the defecting chieftain, also accused security agencies of failing to prevent the violence despite prior notification. According to him, he had formally notified the Commissioner of Police, the DSS, the NSCDC, and other security agencies ahead of the event to forestall any breakdown of law and order. He alleged that despite the advance notice, the suspected thugs successfully disrupted the programme and later invaded his residence after the event was relocated. Nworie further alleged that the attackers vandalised vehicles, chairs, canopies, and other valuables at his residence, and that eight of his supporters sustained serious injuries and were receiving treatment in hospital. He appealed to security agencies to investigate the incident and ensure that citizens are free to exercise their constitutional rights to freedom of association and political participation.
However, the APC State Chairman, Chief Stanley Okoro Emegha, denied any involvement by the ruling party in the attack. Emegha said the APC had no reason to engage in violence, insisting that the party’s conduct was guided by the position of Governor Francis Nwifuru. “So far as it has to do with the APC in Ebonyi State, we watch the body language of our dear Governor. He doesn’t want to offend anyone. There has never been a time the APC would have a hand in violence,” he said. The APC chairman suggested that individuals who were aggrieved by the defection might have acted independently, but he maintained that the party did not sanction any violence.
The attack comes amid heightened political activities in Ebonyi State ahead of the 2027 general elections, with defections and counter-defections rocking both the APC and PDP in the state. The PDP National Vice Chairman (South-East), Chidiebere Egwu, also condemned the attack, describing it as "barbaric." Egwu insisted that no Nigerian should be attacked for exercising the constitutional right to freely associate with or belong to any political party. When contacted by SaharaReporters, the lawyer accused of leading the attack, Friday Agbom, denied the allegations, dismissing the affected reporters as "political journalists" and questioning why they were covering the event.
As of the time of this report, the Ebonyi State Police Command had yet to issue an official statement on the incident, despite the presence of over 20 armed policemen stationed at the original event venue, which was a short distance from where the road was reportedly blocked by the suspected thugs. The attack has once again highlighted the dangers faced by journalists covering political events in Nigeria, where the line between political rivalry and violence is often dangerously blurred. For the journalists who narrowly escaped death, the experience serves as a stark reminder of the risks that come with reporting on the country's increasingly volatile political landscape.
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