The Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) has described as reckless comments by the Governor of Benue State, Mr Samuel Ortom, accusing the Buhari administration of bias for criminal herdsmen.
The group contends that the allegation is untrue, unfounded, and should not be made by one who has the serious job of governing a State.
In a statement signed by its Chairman Niyi Akinsiju and Secretary Cassidy Madueke, the group said President Buhari has shown neither bias nor favouritism to any tribe or ethnic group, let alone to criminals who are working against the peace of Nigeria.
The group called on Governor Ortom to desist from making comments like this and rather focus on governing his State “which is suffering from serious mal-governance and absence of serious leadership.
“Unpaid salaries, poor, if not non-existent infrastructure, hungry unpaid pensioners, zero human capital development, all have bedevilled Benue State under Governor Samuel Ortom. Yet he wants to make an attempt to distract attention from the disaster that he is, by making outlandish and untrue comments accusing the President, while taking zero responsibility for the failure of governance in his state.”
BMO said that it was false and ridiculous to claim that criminals of the Fulani ethnic origin were not being arrested or prosecuted.
“Hundreds of arrests have been made of criminals perpetrating wrongdoings in the country. Whether they were armed herdsmen or bandits or kidnappers. None arrested has been spared due to their tribe or ethnic identity. Most of them are being prosecuted—even in Benue State. It is highly irresponsible that Mr Ortom would make imputations that the President has any bias for criminals of his ethnic identity.
“Does he think the President calls the thousands of Divisional Police Officers (DPO) across the country asking them to spare criminals arrested who are Fulanis? Isn’t that outlandish! One who is a Governor should be more creative in the kind of postulations he makes.
“Governor Ortom’s remarks only aim at casting aspersion on the President and attacking his ethnic group—a very primitive way of diverting attention from the bad governance he is suffering his state with.”
The group urged Governor Ortom to focus on dedicating the short period of time he still has as Governor on delivering at least one critical infrastructure project in his State and abandon chasing shadows.
BMO also called on the Governor to borrow a leaf from his counterpart in Kaduna State, and learn to be an emissary of peace and unity, and not an advocate for division and warmongering.