By THOMAS AKASE, Makurdi –
Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has described as spurious and far from the truth, the allegation that he hated the Idoma people, particularly as it relates to the 2023 governorship election in the state.
Governor Ortom was reacting to a widely circulated statement by the Benue Rebirth Movement !BRM), in which the group claimed that the Governor hated the Idoma people and would not want them to be elected into office as governor of the state.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Nathaniel Ikyur on Tuesday, the governor noted that since 2015 when he came to office, he had continued to promote the unity of the state with accentuated vigour.
“This is also displayed in the now famous ‘Unity Cap’ which he preaches to build unity among all ethnic nationalities in the state and Nigeria in general,” Ikyur said.
The rest of the statement reads:
“Of utmost importance to the governor is the oath of office and oath of allegiance he swore to that makes every citizen of the state his primary responsibility. He has displayed this in both his appointments and siting of amenities as no zone in the state lags behind.
“The idea behind this is to show that Benue is for all and not just for the Tiv alone as the AVM Monday Morgan’s Benue Rebirth Movement, BRM wants the public to believe”.
“It is on record that Governor Ortom had counselled the leadership of the Benue Rebirth Movement to reach out to their Tiv brothers to canvass support across all political parties, and not just in the People’s Democratic Party, PDP for the purpose of an Idoma son or daughter to be elected as Governor of the State. That way, Governor Ortom believes there will be a singleness of purpose and approach for our Idoma brothers to have a level field of contest.
“We advise the Benue Rebirth Movement to do more homework by building trust and confidence with their Tiv brothers in their quest and not to turn and make Governor Ortom an issue in their contest for the governorship of the state. Governor Ortom is not against an Idoma man becoming the governor of the State. It is a process that involves everyone.”
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