Mbah denies he stopped Obi's event in Enugu

Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has denied claims that he stopped a private venue from hosting a town hall meeting. This meeting was set to feature Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, in Enugu.

Mbah shared a statement on his X account on Wednesday. He called the allegation false and said he had nothing to do with the decision to deny the organizers the use of the venue.

"My attention has just been drawn to a video circulating on some social media platforms, alleging that I gave an order denying a political party use of a private facility for their town hall event. This is preposterous and utter falsehood, because I did not," Mbah wrote.

He suggested that the opposition was trying to get public attention with this claim. He warned that while democracy supports freedom of expression, it does not allow for defamation.

"This is shameful and reveals a desperate pattern adopted by the opposition to attract attention. There’s no doubt that democracy guarantees freedom of expression. It should be noted, however, that it does not grant anyone the right to defamation," he said.

Mbah mentioned that legal options were available for those who felt wronged. He cautioned against crossing what he called red lines.

The governor’s Senior Special Assistant, Dan Nwomeh, also supported him. He asked why Mbah should be blamed for renting a private venue.

"What has Governor Mbah got to do with the rental of a privately owned facility? It appears some people on this app get a kick out of blaming Governor Mbah for just about everything," Nwomeh wrote on X.

He added that the governor is focused on keeping his promises and developing the state. He noted that the campaign period has not started yet.

This issue came up after the Amadeo Event Centre in Enugu was pulled as the venue for a town hall meeting. This meeting was organized by the Nigeria Democratic Congress and was set for Thursday, October 29, 2026.

A video that spread on social media showed NDC official, Princess Ada Ogbu, confronting venue staff about this decision. She claimed that the state government had pressured the venue to cancel the event.

The meeting was expected to include Obi and Kwankwaso. Reports with the video stated that the venue was withdrawn less than 24 hours before the event, even after payment had been made.