By Kolawole Ojebisi
Former Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has told his immediate successor, Alia Hyacinth, to get to grips with the insecurity bedeviling the state under his watch and stop passing the buck to past administrations.
Ortom maintained that Alia’s obsession with his name will not end the bloodletting and its attendant humanitarian crisis which have come to define his administration.
The immediate past governor stated this in a statement issued by his former Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, on Sunday, urging the incumbent Benue’s helmsman to get his priorities right.
“At no time did Chief Ortom claim there were four million IDPs. The administration worked with reputable humanitarian agencies to generate accurate, verifiable data. The 1.5 million figure was officially documented and is the same figure Governor Alia inherited, accepted, and presented to partners,” the statement reads in part.
“From the day he assumed office, Governor Alia and his aides have made it their mission to drag Ortom’s name into every matter, whether relevant or not. This obsession won’t solve the crisis in the state.
“While IDPs were protesting hunger and neglect, the Executive Secretary of SEMA was seen attending a lavish wedding in the United Kingdom. We expected a press release that would address that shameful insensitivity. Instead, what we got was yet another attack on Ortom,” the statement added.
Ortom advised Alia to review his security strategy, urging the governor to implement the security roadmap recommended by President Bola Tinubu during his recent visit to the state as the time for excuses had passed.
“Mr. President gave practical steps to address insecurity in Benue. Rather than act, Governor Alia keeps spinning excuses — one day blaming foreign mercenaries, the next day it’s ‘Abuja politicians,’ and now even religious leaders,” he said.
The ex-governor’s statement was prompted by Alia’s recent assertion that under Ortom’s tenure, Benue recorded over four million internally displaced persons.
“Under Ortom’s watch, Benue State recorded the highest number of IDPs in its history, with over four million people displaced from their ancestral homes. This figure underscores the failure of reactive rhetoric without strategic support for security architecture.” Alia was quoted to have said by his Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, had said.
