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The Chairman of Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State, Blessing Albert Ebhodaghe, popularly known as BB, has reportedly threatened to demolish a hotel allegedly used by members of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) for a political meeting.

The allegation is contained in a leaked voice recording circulating in the state. In the recording, a voice purportedly belonging to the council chairman warned against allowing members of the opposition party to hold further meetings at the hotel.

According to the recording, the speaker threatened that buildings and businesses belonging to the hotel owner could be demolished if the NDC held another meeting at the facility.

The voice is heard saying, “The government will bring down any building or business of any person that attends any NDC meeting in his hotel.”

He also claimed that the government owned the land on which the hotel was built.

When asked whether the statement amounted to a threat from the government, the voice allegedly responded, “Yes, it’s a threat from the government and me.”

The allegation against the Esan West council chairman has raised fresh concerns among political stakeholders in Edo State about the treatment of opposition groups and their supporters ahead of future political activities.

Attempts to obtain comments from the council chairman, Ebhodaghe, were unsuccessful. He did not respond to messages seeking clarification, while calls to his phone were not answered as of the time of filing this report.

The allegation comes amid wider concerns over disruptions to NDC activities in some parts of the country.

SaharaReporters recently reported that the NDC identified eight of its members who it said sustained gunshot injuries during an alleged attack on its monthly ward meeting in Obuofia, Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State.

The victims identified by the party were Onovo Donald Ekene, Ngene Godwin Madueke, Ogbodo Gloria, Onovo Victor, Maduabuchi Ugwu, Nnaemeka Nelson, Chinonso Nwagbara and Obinna Daniel Owo.

The incident reportedly occurred on Saturday afternoon at Ihuani Awkunanaw in Obuofia, the ancestral home of the Awkunanaw people and hometown of the NDC governorship candidate in the state, Sir Christian Chinyeaka Ohaa.

In a statement issued by Ohaa’s Media Aid, Hon. Sampson Ukwu, the campaign said NDC members had gathered for the party’s statewide monthly ward meeting when armed hoodlums allegedly invaded the venue and opened fire.

“The following 8 persons sustained gunshot injuries,” the statement said before listing the alleged victims.

The party also alleged that canopies, chairs and other political materials were vandalised and destroyed during the attack.

“This is a clear act of political thuggery and an attempt to intimidate members of the opposition through violence,” the statement said.

The NDC further alleged that the incident was part of a pattern of disruptions targeting its political activities in Nkanu West, claiming that similar incidents had previously occurred in Akpugo and Obe wards.

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The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has repatriated a Chinese national, Zhang Shijie, who was wanted in China over an alleged smuggling operation involving about 1,400 tonnes of endangered African rosewood.

Zhang, who had been wanted since 2021, was arrested by operatives of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB), Abuja, on September 10, 2026, in the Ogere area of Ogun State.

The police said the suspect was wanted by the Yangpu Sub-Bureau of the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of the Haikou Customs District in China in connection with the alleged smuggling of Pterocarpus erinaceus, commonly known as African rosewood.

According to a statement issued on Thursday by the Force Public Relations Officer, Ani Iniedu, the Chinese authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Zhang on January 7, 2021.

The alleged offences, the police said, were committed between November 2020 and January 2021 and involved approximately 1,400 tonnes of the endangered tree species.

The consignment was valued at about 15.7 million Chinese yuan, according to the Chinese authorities cited by the police.

The Force said the arrest followed sustained intelligence gathering, surveillance and coordinated investigative efforts by INTERPOL NCB Abuja.

“Following sustained intelligence gathering, surveillance and coordinated investigative efforts, operatives of INTERPOL NCB Abuja arrested the fugitive on 10 September 2026 in the Ogere area of Ogun State,” the statement said.

The police disclosed that Zhang had remained outside China following the alleged offences and was subsequently traced to Nigeria, where he had been residing in Ogun State.

At the time of his arrest, the suspect was reportedly in possession of a Chinese passport which had expired on November 11, 2023.

Following the arrest and completion of necessary procedures, the NPF said Zhang was repatriated to Guangzhou, China, on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.

The Force said the repatriation was carried out under existing bilateral police cooperation arrangements between Nigeria and China.

The development underscores the role of INTERPOL’s National Central Bureau in Nigeria in tracking and facilitating the return of foreign nationals wanted for alleged offences in their home countries.

It also highlights growing international cooperation in tackling the illegal exploitation and trafficking of endangered natural resources.

African rosewood, scientifically known as Pterocarpus erinaceus, is a valuable hardwood species that has faced intense exploitation and trafficking across West Africa.

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The death toll resulting from the consumption of a suspected poisonous alcoholic beverage outbreak in parts of Ondo State has risen to 49, while the number of affected persons has also increased to 170.

Providing an update on the situation in Akure, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Banji Ajaka, noted that the new cases were recorded in Irele Local Government Area.

He said health authorities were intensifying surveillance, case management and contact tracing to contain the outbreak and identify the source of the poisonous substance.

Ajaka added that medical teams had been deployed to the affected communities to monitor the situation, manage cases and trace the source of the suspected poisonous substance.

He said the state government was also working with security and regulatory agencies, including the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Department of State Services, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and other relevant agencies.

He disclosed that the matter was discussed at a national meeting involving commissioners for health across the country and officials of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, where Ondo State’s rapid response in surveillance, case management and tracking was commended.

Ajaka, in an earlier briefing, had disclosed that 29 people had died in connection with the suspected poisoning in Odigbo Local Government Area, with 121 persons affected at that stage.

According to him, the deaths in Odigbo were caused by locally produced alcoholic and alcoholic-herbal substances consumed during two naming ceremonies in the affected communities.

He noted that investigations showed that an individual who was not a member of one of the families hosting a naming ceremony procured the substance and brought it to the event for guests to consume.

The affected communities previously identified in Odigbo Local Government Area include New Town, Odole, Okele, Orita Odigbo, Araromi-Obu and Oniparaga.

To end the fatalities, the state government has banned the production and sale of locally brewed alcoholic and alcoholic-herbal beverages in Odigbo Local Government Area as a precautionary measure.

The police have also arrested a suspect in Araromi-Obu in connection with the production and distribution of the substances, while further investigation is ongoing.