Benue Killings: Buhari Surrounded By Wrong Set Of Advicers – Ortom
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Msughshima Andrew, Makurdi
Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has stated that President Mohammadu Buhari is surrounded by the wrong set of people as advisers and is not able to take the right decisions on issues affecting the nation.
Governor Ortom stated this while condemning comments credited to the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali in the news media over killings in Benue recently.
Loading ...The Minister for Defence, Mansur Dan Ali was reported to have said that the killing in parts of Benue state by suspected herders were unconnected to the implementation of the Anti-open grazing bill in the state.
He was also quoted to have told newsmen in Abuja that the herdsmen are equally Nigerians and Benue people must learn how to accept foreigners within their communities.
But in a quick reaction in Makurdi, Friday, Governor Ortom said it was very unfortunate that such comment is coming from a highly placed personality in the country describing it as provoking, insensitive and amounted to dancing on the graves of those innocent women and children asvwell as the aged people murdered unjustly and in cold blood by the herdsmen early this year.
“It is very unfortunate that the comment is comming from someone who is educated, who served in the army, a Minister and someone who has traveled far and near around the globe. How can he say that.
“It is unfortunate that these kind of people are manned with the responsibility of providing security for our state. The other day, the federal government came up to say the killings were done by Islamic State in West Africa (ISWA) and the same minister was quoted as saying that we should accommodate foreigners in our state. Foreigners who came here illegally and are killing my people, I should accommodate them? Minister, I will not do that in Benue State. You can go and do it in your own state.
“I think people are misadvising and misleading President Muhammadu Buhari from doing the right thing. These killings have started as far nack as 2012 before our anti open grazing law and killings have also been going on in others states without grazing law as we speak.
“People are being killed in Adamawa, Plateau, Kaduna, Enugu, Ekiti and other places. Is there anti grazing law there? So, if that Minister said that, I will conclude that the wrong set of people are around Buhari and that pains me, what a country? How can they be killing my people and still expect me to keep quiet. I will continue to talk until justice is done” he noted.
He stated further that Dan-Ali’s comment implies that the federal government has now provided immunity for herders who kill and maim as well as for their cattle and cautioned that instead of diverting attention with grazing routes and colonies, the Federal government should address the real issues of the moment.
The governor however assured the Minister that he serves a living God who would surely in due course avenge the perceived injustice currently being done to the people of Benue just as he urged his citizens to remain law abiding.
“The God I serve lives and he is a God of Justice. They can do whatever they want today because they have the power, God is our defence. We know that the day of reckoning is coming when there would be judgement. But there is no going back on the law”, he added.
