Group Drags FG To Court, Demands Adequate Security For Obi

The Obedient Lawyers Forum, a support group for Peter Obi, has approached the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking adequate security protection for the former Anambra State governor ahead of the 2027 general election.

The group said it took the legal action following what it described as threats to Obi’s life, warning that it does not want a repeat of the circumstances surrounding the 2006 killing of former Lagos State governorship candidate, Funso Williams.

The suit, marked      FHC/ABJ/CS/1648/2026, has President Bola Tinubu, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi; Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo; the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu; the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS); and the Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) as defendants.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Monday, a member of the group and lawyer who filed the suit, Okere Nnamdi, said Obi had raised concerns over his safety, prompting the group to seek judicial intervention.

Nnamdi said the group was asking the court to enforce Obi’s fundamental right to security and ensure that adequate protection was provided for him.

“Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the NDC and our principal in the Obedient Movement, has alerted the whole world that his life is under threat by the Bola Tinubu administration.

“And we have come to court to enforce his fundamental right, and we are praying that he should be provided adequate security,” he said.

The lawyer said the group was particularly concerned about the possibility of Obi becoming a victim of political violence as activities towards the 2027 presidential election intensified.

He cited the killing of Williams, a former governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos State, as a precedent the group does not want repeated.

According to him, Obi’s political activities ahead of the 2027 election bear similarities to the political circumstances surrounding Williams before his death.

“Peter Obi is warming up to reclaim his mandate in the 2027 presidential election. And it’s a similar scenario that happened in Lagos State more than 20 years ago,” Nnamdi said.

He expressed concern that the circumstances surrounding Williams’ death have never been fully resolved.

“Even all the security agencies in Nigeria, the DSS, the police, nobody has come out to say who killed Funso Williams or how Funso Williams died.

“Funso Williams died in Lagos… so we don’t want a similar scenario. Peter Obi must not be another victim of a political assassination,” he said.

Nnamdi also referred to a previous controversy involving Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, who he said had warned Obi against visiting the state without permission.

The lawyer argued that Obi, as a Nigerian citizen and presidential aspirant, has the constitutional right to travel to any part of the country to campaign and interact with voters.

“As the campaign will soon commence, Peter Obi has the constitutional right, as a citizen of Nigeria, to go to any part of the country to campaign,” he said.

He therefore called on President Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, to direct the relevant security agencies to provide adequate protection for Obi as political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 elections.

“We are saying that the president, as Commander-in-Chief and chief security officer, has the constitutional duty to direct the police, the DSS and the civil defence to provide adequate security for Mr Peter Obi,” Nnamdi said.