Former Governor of Benue State, Chief Samuel Ortom, has called on his successor, Governor Hyacinth Alia, to stop shifting blame and instead focus on tackling the growing insecurity in the state, in line with the roadmap presented by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his recent visit.
This was contained in a statement issued on Sunday by Ortom’s media aide, Terver Akase, who accused Governor Alia of persistently dragging the former governor’s name into issues unrelated to him.
“We read a statement by Governor Alia through his Chief Press Secretary, where he once again turned attention to Ortom, even though the matter had nothing to do with the former governor,” Akase said.
“Governor Alia and his aides are so obsessed with Ortom’s name that they bring him up at every opportunity. This blame game must stop.”
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Akase dismissed Governor Alia’s recent claim that over four million people were displaced during Ortom’s administration, describing it as false.
He clarified that the Ortom-led government had developed a reliable data system for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), in collaboration with both national and international agencies, including NEMA, UNHCR, UNICEF, and the ICRC.
“The same figure of 1.5 million IDPs that Governor Alia now uses was handed over to him by Ortom’s administration,” the statement added.
Akase further accused the Alia administration of playing politics with the lives of Benue people, who continue to face violent attacks from armed herders.
“People are dying like animals in villages, but the government is playing down the number of deaths and displacement,” he said.
Referring to President Tinubu’s recent visit to Benue, Akase urged the governor to begin implementing the recommendations provided by the president.
“It has been five days since the President visited and advised Governor Alia on what to do. Why is there no action yet?”
He also referenced a protest held by hundreds of IDPs in Makurdi, who accused the government of abandoning them. Akase questioned the priorities of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), criticising the agency’s Executive Secretary for reportedly attending a lavish wedding in the United Kingdom amid the crisis at home.
The statement called on the governor to allow the state’s 23 local government councils to manage their own funds, citing a Supreme Court judgement granting full financial autonomy to local governments.
“Allocations to LGs have increased by 400% since fuel subsidy was removed. Let them use their money to improve security and development,” Akase argued.
He concluded with a warning that Ortom’s camp would no longer remain silent in the face of what he described as politically motivated attacks.
“Chief Ortom is no longer the governor; he played his role and stepped aside. The mantle of leadership now rests with the current governor. If Governor Alia and his administration are out of their depth in handling the security challenges in the state, they should publicly admit their incapacity and call stakeholders for help, as President Tinubu also counselled recently, rather than throwing canisters at imaginary opponents,” the statement said.
