Samuel Ortom, the former governor of Benue State, has vowed to unmask the rot in the administration of Governor Hyacinth Alia.
It was reports that Ortom made the statement while reacting to allegations that his administration could not account for ₦139.8 billion during his eight-year tenure.
Ortom said he would expose the hypocrisy and evil in Alia’s government while speaking to reporters in an interactive session at his residence in Judges Quarters along Gboko Road in Makurdi, the state capital.
He said, “From today, I will be exposing this government (Alia administration) for its hypocrisy, outright looting of the state resources and evils committed against the people of the state and the ceding of our land to foreigners.
“There’s so much that’s been said about me that’s not true. Three years later I decided that if I stay quiet it will be an admission, so I have to defend myself and let the world know what Alia is doing is pure persecution.”
However, Ortom challenged his successor to a public debate to compare their performances based on the resources generated by each administration.
Ortom who spoke on his political differences with his former leader, Senator George Akume, called for unity and collaboration in the interest of Benue State and Nigeria.
Ortom openly declared on Tuesday that he regretted making that statement, referring to a statement he made against Akume after he won his re-election in 2019 that he had “retired Akume politically”.
“Later during my prayers, I came to realise that the remark was out of arrogance because I later acknowledged the fact that only God determines people’s destinies,” he said.
The former governor explained that he had since reconciled with Akume whom he described as his leader, adding that Akume still has political influence and that he had decided to work with him through a strategic partnership aimed at advancing the “Benue project”, despite belonging to different political parties.
He said the current challenges facing Nigeria require that leaders rise above partisan politics and put national and state interests ahead of party interests.
Meanwhile, Alia has reacted to his predecessor’s outburst, saying the former governor left behind a heavy debt burden that was questionable.
The incumbent governor, through his Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, said his government was not on a vendetta against his predecessor.
“Handover notes are for study. When you study them and you find lapses and gaps, you are bound to call in a legitimate authority to help you untangle the grey areas.
And that was exactly what Governor Alia did. In any case, this will not be the first time that a commission of inquiry will look into the activities of a past administration. Ortom was one that probed his predecessor, Sen. Gabriel Suswam.
“Ortom should tell Benue and Nigerians why he felt very comfortable to probe his predecessor, but he is not comfortable that he should be probed.
Alia said his administration is still trying to salvage the rot left by Ortom’s administration.
He said, “There is hardly a day passing without garnishee orders being issued in the state. We are faced with garnishees in the billions. These are as a result of careless handling of issues and open disregard for procedure, which was the hallmark of that notorious administration Benue people called ‘years of the locusts’.”
