Billboard Vandalism: ‘Don’t Retaliate, remain peaceful,’ Ben Kalu Urges Supporters After Tinubu, Kalu Billboards Were Vandalised

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, has appealed to his supporters in Bende Federal Constituency to remain peaceful and focused following the reported vandalism of campaign billboards bearing his image and that of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Kalu, who made the appeal in a Facebook post, urged members of the All Progressives Congress and his supporters in Bende to resist the temptation to retaliate, describing restraint as necessary for the peace and progress of the constituency.

The Deputy Speaker asked his supporters to continue mobilising, reaching out to voters and promoting the achievements of the administration and his constituency interventions despite what he described as attacks, insults and disrespect.

“Do not retaliate, not because you are weak but because you are stronger,” don’t be distracted” – Kalu wrote

He said the political contest should remain focused on candidates seeking elective positions in Bende, while cautioning his supporters against being drawn into unnecessary confrontations with other actors.

Kalu also linked the reported destruction of the billboards to the broader question of political competition in the constituency, arguing that physical campaign materials could be destroyed but that the impact of development projects, in his view, remained with the people.

ALSO READ : Hoodlums vandalise Tinubu, Kalu campaign billboards in Abia

“If they destroyed the billboards, they have not destroyed the dividends of democracy written in the hearts of the great people of Bende,” he stated.

The Deputy Speaker further cited roads and solar-powered lighting projects which he said had been delivered in the constituency, arguing that the alleged perpetrators of the vandalism had themselves benefited from infrastructure provided through public representation.

Kalu consequently called on his supporters to continue promoting President Tinubu and his administration’s programmes, as well as his own constituency projects, rather than responding to the alleged vandalism with violence.

He described the movement around his political campaign as the “yellow movement”, linking the colour to what he called the “brightest light of BENDEVELOPMENT.”

The lawmaker also invoked the biblical injunction to “follow peace with all men”, stressing that the current political season was not a time for confrontation.

He assured his supporters, however, that they should remain prepared for future political battles, while insisting that the immediate priority should be peace, mobilisation and continued engagement with the electorate.

The statement comes against the backdrop of a recent report of the alleged vandalisation of campaign billboards bearing the images of President Tinubu and Kalu in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State.

Kalu represents Bende Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and has increasingly made constituency development and federal projects central themes of his political messaging. His office has also highlighted the establishment of federal tertiary institutions in Bende as part of efforts to expand educational opportunities in the constituency.