Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom yesterday technically withdrew his support for the Presidential aspirations of the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.
Africa Today News, New York reports that Ortom on Tuesday accused Atiku of denigrating him as governor and working against the interest of the people of Benue State which he governs.
The Benue State governor who was ostensibly angered by Atiku’s comments on the recent killings by suspected herdsmen in his state made comments that the former Vice President will not like.
Africa Today News, New York recalls that Atiku appeared to have justified the recent killings in Benue State by Fulani herders when he said that the condemnable acts were due to ‘sustained clashes between farmers and herders.’
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His comments are coming on the heels of the elder statesmen in Benue, Minda Leaders of Thoughts’, withdrawal of support for Atiku, accusing him of hate speech and profiling of Benue people.
However, Governor Ortom in his reaction accused Atiku of working with Miyetti Allah, a herdsmen group notoriously known for carrying out outrageous killings.
‘It was not correct for a presidential candidate who is seeking to rule the people to say that kind of thing.
‘It was very wrong. And it would appear that he doesn’t even reference me and consider me to be a Governor of my state,’ he said.
In a related development, Mr. Bola Tinubu who is the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has vowed to devote 100 percent of his time and energy to the service of Nigeria and its citizens if he becomes President stressing that he would not be like other candidates that would share time shuttling between living in Dubai and Nigeria.
The former governor of Lagos State, who boasted that he was only a few steps to becoming the president, pledged to concentrate his full attention and energy in confronting the nation’s pressing challenges and surmounting them.
He made this assertion while addressing members of the Tijjaniyya Islamic sect at a consultative meeting at the Kano State Government House.
While quoting Nigeria’s erstwhile national anthem, he stressed the need for Nigerians to be united in brotherhood despite their differences.