The Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has advised the Presidency to take his advice instead of throwing insults at him.
Ortom was reacting to a statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in reaction to an Arise TV interview he granted.
The presidential aide had tackled Ortom, saying he shouldn’t blame the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), for the challenges in his state.
Reacting, Ortom, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Nathaniel Ikyur, said the Presidency is going about in circles while ignoring the weighty issues that border on national security.
The statement read in part, “The Governor decried the rate at which the sovereignty of Nigeria is daily being compromised with the activities of armed Fulani herdsmen that have continued to kill and sack communities across the country. The President’s state of Katsina is badly hit with the activities of these terrorists. It is the President’s failure to secure Nigeria that has allowed terrorists to take over most states. This is not the making of Governor Ortom.
“For more than a year, the Governor has been shut out from seeing the President. Is this too a lie?
“Has President Buhari’s government not spent billions of dollars in ‘Turning Around the Maintenance’ of the nation’s refineries without commensurate results from the facilities? Is it Governor Ortom that stopped the President from revamping the country’s refineries after such humongous sums were spent on it? Why did Garba Shehu fail to see all of these but chose to gloss over them?
“It is, therefore, curious that Garba did not address the issues Governor Ortom raised in the interview with Arise TV. Rather, he went about chasing shadows, trying in vain to paint the governor in a bad light. In doing so, he turns to accuse the governor of funding a militia group. This is the height of irresponsibility.
“Rather than take the advice Governor Ortom offers for the collective good of the nation, Garba Shehu and those hired to insult the governor find it easy to ignore the weighty issues that border on national security but rather go about in circles. We think the President and his handlers will do well to take Governor Ortom seriously when he speaks than indulging in unnecessary mudslinging.
“It is uncharitable and truly a betrayal of hope for the President Muhammadu Buhari government who has consistently blamed past administrations to now find it convenient to accuse Governor Ortom of blaming others before him. This is ridiculous and has exposed the Buhari government of being bereft of ideas and indeed empty of tackling the nation’s myriad of problems.”
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