Two people were reportedly killed in Fugar, Etsako Central Local Government Area of Edo State, on Wednesday, after the campaign train of candidates of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), who had campaigned to a neighbouring village called Ogbuna, ahead of the local government election scheduled for next weekend, was allegedly attacked by a supporter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Trouble started when the PDP supporter, who recently dumped the ACN for the PDP, hit the campaign train of the returning ACN supporters with a bus belonging to the PDP, seriously injuring some ACN supporters in the process.
Reports gathered indicated that the ACN supporters later mobilised and launched a reprisal attack on the PDP supporter, trailing him to his house and killing an old man they mistook for his father in the process.
Residents reported that what followed was an orgy of violence, attacks and counter-attacks as the PDP members regrouped and reportedly burnt down the house of the ACN chairman in the local government and some ACN councillorship candidates late on Wednesday night.
Further attacks were reported to have been carried out late on Wednesday and in the early hours of Thursday with reports indicating that at least five houses were either completely razed or touched, while gunshots rented the air.
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Edo State Police Command, DSP Moses Eguavoen, confirmed that an attack by rival political parties occurred in Fugar on Wednesday, adding that many arrests had been made over the attack.
DSP Eguavoen also said that the state Police Commissioner, Mr Foluso Adebanjo, visited Fugar on Thursday morning to access the extent of damage, while confirming that two persons were killed in the attacks.
Culled from Thetribune
