A coalition of elders in Edo State has strongly criticized what they called an "unwarranted barrage of insults and abuses" directed at the Oba of Benin, His Royal Majesty Oba Ewuare II, by supporters of the Labour Party and its gubernatorial candidate, Olumide Akpata.
The elders, operating under the umbrella of the Edo Socio-Cultural Advancement and Good Governance Initiative, expressed shock and disappointment at what they described as a "childish, unwarranted and unacceptable behavior" of some Labour Party supporters across various social media platforms.
The controversy erupted after Akpata, during a visit to the Oba's palace, referred to himself as a "son of the palace" in both English and the local dialect. However, Oba Ewuare II later dismissed this claim, stating that Akpata had no direct or distant links to the Palace.
This rebuttal led to a backlash from some supporters of Akpata, who took to social media to verbally attack the Oba.
In response to these events, the spokesman for the Elders' group, Comrade Melvin Irabor, stated that the Oba was not out of place in correcting Akpata's claim to be the "son of the palace."
Irabor also mentioned that they were inundated with a "barrage of abuses" on the revered Oba of Benin by Akpata's supporters on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.
The group emphasized that the Oba of Benin, as the "mouthpiece of the gods and the revered royal father of the kingdom," has a responsibility to stay apolitical and correct any candidate making "erroneous remarks and insinuations."
They called on all political parties to conduct their campaigns in a "democratic manner and keep the campaign issues-based."
The elders warned the Labour Party supporters to desist from hurling insults on the Oba, stating that such actions would be considered an "affront on the palace
