Benue Governor’s defection excites Governing Party

Nigeria’s governing party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) says it is relieved and excited that the Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom has left the party,
The APC National Chairman, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole stated this at a press briefing at the party’s headquarters in Abuja.
Some Benue youths, few days ago, set up a barricade at the Government House in Makurdi preventing Governor Ortom from travelling to Abuja for a meeting with the APC national leadership.
In the mist of this action by the youths, Governor Ortom declared that he was living the APC stating that it was the wish of his people for him to leave the party and join Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
Tactical ploy
The APC National Chairman described the events at Benue Government House as a tactical ploy by the Governor to avoid the meeting in Abuja where he was supposed to answer to some allegations levelled at him by some leaders of the party from Benue State.
Mr. Oshiomhole said the allegations could not be ignored by the party anymore and that they were glad the Governor has left considering the allegations.
“From the point of view of our leaders in Benue State, their position was clear that fielding Governor Ortom on APC platform in 2019 can only lead to electoral defeat for a number of reasons.
 “They reminded us that in spite of the allocation accruing to Benue State, the bail our fund amount to over N20 billion and the huge sums of money collected from the Paris club refund and he was not paying salaries to Benue workers, including teachers, local government employees and civil servants. He owes some of them as much as 12months salaries.
 “So, the entire economy of Benue State that survives on civil servants salaries is to that effect compromised. What is not obvious is that those who live on rents paid by civil servants cannot collect their rents with which to survive, thereby having effect on the commercial live of the people. This explains a vicious circle of poverty in Benue State that has been deepened under Gov. Ortom.
 “The second is that Gov. Ortom has complicated, by his own actions, and poor judgment the security situation in the State. They draw our attention to the fact that some of those that have been arrested as a result of the killings are people who have been associated with him, including people in his employment, especially a guy known to have been involved in Boko Haram whom he recruited to manage what they called forest guard.
 “These people have been arrested and are in police custody. If an appointee of a Governor is involved in a heinous crime, including killing that will be enough for a Governor to worry about. Instead, he played up the ethnic dimension of criminality, even though some of those killed were killed not by Muslims, but Christian of Benue State origin, including those he employed.
 “It is important that Nigerians understand that the condemnable killings of two Reverend Fathers and some Christians in a church, those who have confessed to these crimes include people who have worked with Gov. Ortom and these killings were done few weeks after one of them was extremely critical during his sermon about the governance of the State and the style of governance of the Governor.
 “There was also the fact that for three and half years that he has been in office, he cannot point to any concrete project that he has carried out. He cannot point to any major project that has been completed.
 “His argument is that he has diverted a lot of the resources to security issue. That raises the issue. Can you be spending N22 billion on security and the people are increasingly insecure? So if you accept that he spent money on security, it meant that he realises that he has a responsibility to secure lives and not pass the bulk.
 “So, I felt scandalised watching him saying he had to leave the APC because he did not feel secure. To be honest, I am relieved as National Chairman and the leadership of our party in Benue State are relieved that he has returned to where he came from,” he said.
Mr. Oshiomhole said that this gives the party an opportunity to start on a clean slate and nominate a candidate for 2019 that will work with the party’s ideology and put the people of Benue State first.
He further advised elected leaders in the APC to work on having a good relationship with their people in order to get elected again into office because automatic ticket does not guarantee victory.
Sammie Idika