Samuel Ortom, the immediate past Governor of Benue State, has engaged in a vicious battle of words with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over a statement in which he (Atiku) allegedly accused Ortom of corruption.
According to reports, Atiku insinuated that members of the Integrity Group (G-5) who worked against him during the last presidential election are facing corruption charges at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) but are being shielded by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to Ortom, the February 25 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate’s comment reflects a dissatisfied guy who has been rejected by his own party due to his past corrupt acts.
Terver Akase, Ortom’s communications aide, said in a statement on Wednesday that Atiku should be concerned about “being the first presidential candidate of a leading political party to be rejected by key stakeholders.”
“We are not certain that the Special Assistant on Public Communication to the PDP presidential candidate obtained his permission before making the statement; if he did, he would not have blamed the G-5 for his loss at the polls.”
“Alhaji Atiku Abubakar should be more concerned that he has become the first presidential candidate of a major political party to be rejected by key stakeholders, including five sitting governors and many other party members.”
“He should be concerned about why the G-5 and other members of the Integrity Group rejected his candidacy.” “The group stood for justice, equity, and fairness that the presidency in 2023 must go to the southern part of the country, and Nigerians saw the undeniable facts contained in the Integrity Group’s position and voted for a presidential candidate from the south,” the statement stated.
Ortom, who is currently being pursued by the Benue State government, claimed that Atiku is enraged because he and his G-5 colleagues refused to be used as ‘Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs)’ by him to circumvent and undermine Nigerians’ will to produce a President from the southern area.
“Another reason for Atiku’s attack on Chief Ortom is the former Benue State Governor’s bravery in speaking the truth to his face and rebuking him for making unstatesmanlike comments about herdsmen killing Benue people.”
“Atiku is on record as being enraged at Ortom for daring to pass legislation prohibiting open grazing of livestock in the state.”
“The former Vice President’s diatribe against Chief Ortom can thus be understood as a manifestation of frustration for losing the 2023 election, his failure to humble himself and unite the PDP, opting to remain haughty even when the signals were clear that he was headed for defeat summarized his performance in the previous election.
” “Atiku lacks the moral authority to accuse others of corruption,” he continued.
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