Politicians in Anambra State have gone underground following heightened insecurity in the state, especially the killing, on Tuesday, September 28, 2021, of late Prof. Dora Akunyili’s husband, Dr Chike Akunyili, at Nkpor, alongside his driver and police orderly.

It was learnt that Akunyili who was on transit after attending a function in Onitsha, caught the attention of the unidentified gunmen because of his security detail, which made the gunmen to mistake him for a big politician.

Unknown gunmen and their agents have been issuing threats, saying that there will be no election on November 6, when Anambra is scheduled to select a new governor to succeed outgoing governor, Chief Willie Obiano.

Following the threats and Dr. Akunyili’s murder, politicians in the state have devised a way to move about without police escort to avoid attracting attention.

Also, branded vehicles of different political parties have suddenly disappeared from the roads following threats to some drivers.

One of the governorship candidates who spoke in confidence said: “Some of us were billed for manifesto debate with a professional body in the state today but we were stopped from attending by a security report.

“We were warned by a top security outfit in the state that our security could not be guaranteed because of the prevailing circumstances in the state.

“My brother, life, they say, has no duplicate. I have suspended every outdoor campaigns for now and I’m sure most of my colleagues had done same.”

Another candidate, who begged not be named, said: “I now move around without security personnel. If you read the story of Akunyili’s attack, you would see that his killers were angered on sighting the police orderly in his car. So, that should serve as a lesson to some of us.”

Already, two frontline governorship candidates, Valentine Ozigbo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Senator Andy Uba of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have announced the suspension of their campaign rallies and public appearances.

They said the decision was as a result of the increased violence in the state and appealed for the killings to end and for peace to return to the state.

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