The Abia State government has shut down a campaign office belonging to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Partners (RHP) in Umuahia, the state capital.
The office, located on Ojike Street, was sealed by the Ministry of Lands and Housing, according to a notice posted at the entrance.
According to some residents, the office was shut down today after government officials pasted markings at the entrance.
The sealed office is one of the structures used by the Renewed Hope Partners, a political network promoting President Tinubu’s agenda in the South-East and driven by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu.
An RHP official who requested anonymity said he resumed work only to discover that the building had been sealed without prior notice.
The information pasted on the walls by the Ministry of Lands and Housing stated that the property is in contravention of the state’s tax law.
It read, “Ministry of Lands and Housing. This property is in contravention of Sections 41 and 100 of the Abia State Tax Law (Codification and Consolidation), Law No. 7 of 2020. And it is hereby sealed.
“Any person, including the owner or occupier, neighbours, or passers-by, who attempts to unseal this building is in contravention of the Abia State Tax Law No. 7 of 2020. Be warned. Keep off.”
Efforts to contact the phone numbers in the notice proved abortive, as all the lines were switched off.
As of the time of writing this report, the government has not issued a statement regarding the development.
In Nigeria, incumbent governments are often accused of stifling opposition by demolishing their buildings or sealing their structures. Some months ago, the Federal Capital Territory sealed the national headquarters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for allegedly owing rent.
