Benue Killings: Ortom Says He is Not Afraid of Assassination Threat

Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State said yesterday that his life was being threatened by those who do not want implementation of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law in the state. He however said he is not afraid to make sacrifice for the sake of his people.

The Governor's Chief Press Secretary, Terva Akasa, quoted Ortom as stating this Friday at the Benue Peoples House Makurdi, during a courtesy call on him by the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Makurdi branch.

The governor affirmed that if it is not the will of God, no man has the right to take life or stop the ongoing implementation of the ranching law of the state.

He told Benue people to remain steadfast till impunity is defeated in Nigeria, saying that no sacrifice is too big in the struggle to end the genocide being perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen in parts of Benue State.

Governor Ortom said it is time Benue sons and daughters put away political differences and unite to speak with one voice against invasion and occupation of their land which has left many people dead and property worth billions destroyed.

He said the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law has come to stay and no amount of intimidation could make the state stop implementing of the legislation.

The Governor expressed the hope that President Muhammadu Buhari would take further steps to stop the killing of innocent people and arrest those behind the genocide especially leaders of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore who had threatened to resist the law.

Governor Ortom while appreciating the NBA for the consolatory visit said he was happy that he had not done the wrong thing by enacting a law that seeks to protect his people, stressing that it was a global best practice and that he and President Buhari also practise ranching.

Earlier, Chairman NBA Makurdi branch, Mr. Emmanuel Agbakor, said the gruesome killings violate the right to life of Benue citizens as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.

He chided the "total lack of concern exhibited by the President regarding the killings in Benue State," stressing that the massacre was worse than the flood incidence which caught the apt attention of the federal government.

While commending Governor Ortom for his efforts towards ensuring peace in the state and for ensuring the implementation of the Open Grazing Prohibition Law, Mr. Agbakor called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of actors of the heinous crime.