Gov Ortom, deputy, 22 LG chairmen shun Atiku’s Benue PDP rally

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, his deputy, Benson Abounu, commissioners, aides, and the state’s 22 local government chairmen were all absent from the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar’s campaign rally in the state.

Benue is controlled by the PDP, where the national chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, is from the state

Former governor of the state, Senator Gabriel Suswam, former president of the Senate, David Mark, and the three senators representing Zones A, B, and C, Suswam, Orker Jev, and Abba Moro, were, however, in attendance.

The rally was also attended by the party’s governorship candidate and his deputy, Titus Uba and John Ngbede, as well as some state working committee members.

Speaking at the rally, Ayu urged Ortom, who had not supported Atiku, to join forces with the party in order to save the country.

Ayu stated that he met with one of the G-5 governors, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State, two days ago and urged him to work with them.

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SaharaReporters had in January reported that Ortom insisted that the five aggrieved governors would not work for Atiku Abubakar in the February 25 election.

“We read a fictitious, online report which claimed that the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, and his colleagues in the G-5 have resolved to work for the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to win the 2023 elections.

“The report is not only false but also mischievous as it is targeted at embarrassing the five governors who have chosen the path of justice, fairness and equity.

“Manufacturers of the said report were apparently on a desperate mission to score a cheap political point. The report could not mention the place and date of the said meeting of G-5 Governors. The writers only sought to take advantage of the crisis within the PDP for their selfish purposes. Governor Ortom and other members of the G-5 have not endorsed the said presidential candidate.

“When the Governor met with the expanded state caucus of PDP yesterday, January 9, 2023, at the Benue Peoples House, Makurdi, his message to them was crystal clear that the national leadership of PDP has failed to utilise its internal conflict resolution mechanism, which has led to the crisis rocking the party,” a statement had partly read.

SR