The police have confirmed the killing.
Gunmen have killed the Labour Party (LP) senatorial candidate for Enugu East District in Amechi Awkunanaw, a community in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State, south-east Nigeria.
The victim, Oyibo Chukwu, was killed on Wednesday evening alongside five supporters who were inside his vehicle.
The killing comes barely three days to the senatorial election which is scheduled to be held this Saturday, 25 February.
The Chairman of the LP in Enugu State, Casmir Agbo, confirmed the incident to PREMIUM TIMES, Thursday morning.
“Yes, it is true. We are currently holding a meeting now about it,” he said.
Mr Agbo suggested that the attackers were not “unknown gunmen” as widely reported, insisting that what happened was a political assassination.
A source close to the slain LP candidate also confirmed the incident to this newspaper.
He said the body of Mr Chukwu, the candidate, was burnt by the gunmen during the attack.
“The problem is that he (Chukwu) does not have security escorts. He campaigns and goes about without any security. Maybe he thought, politics is not a dirty game,” he stated.
When contacted, the police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed the incident but asked for time to provide the details of the attack.
Not the first time
Some LP members have been targets of gunmen attacks in the South-east in recent times, mainly during the party’s political rallies in the region.
But the killing of a candidate of the party is a novelty in Enugu State.
Gunmen, on 31 August, attacked members of the LP in Nenwe, a community in Aninri Local Government Area of the state.
Again, on 4 September, gunmen also attacked other LP members who were holding a meeting in Awgu Community, Awgu Local Government Area of the state.
Gunmen, in December, killed the LP candidate for Onuimo Local Government Area Constituency in Imo State, another state in the South-east.
There are suspicions among the LP members that the attacks might have been sponsored by some members of opposition political parties in the South-east who are said to be disturbed by the growing popularity of the LP in the region.
