Former Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has condemned the blockade that prevented Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate Peter Obi from visiting Yelwata community in Guma Local Government Area, accusing Governor Hyacinth Alia of responsibility for the incident and of disregarding the rule of law.
Speaking on Channels Television’s “Politics Today” on Wednesday, September 9, Ortom said the incident reflected what he described as a wider pattern of lawlessness in the state.
“In Benue State, we have a government that does not believe in the rule of law. We have a government in Benue State that is out for lawlessness. We begin to wonder, if all of us will not respect the rule of law, but also join him in ensuring lawlessness, where are we going to be? This is a supposed man of God, a supposed priest of the Catholic Church. We know that even in the scriptures that we lean on, it says that we must respect the laws of the land.
“But unfortunately, we have somebody who says he’s a Catholic priest and does not respect the rule of law in any way. I condemn what happened yesterday. It is wrong not to allow Peter Obi to visit Benue and sympathise with those people whose people were killed. It was wrong, and that is the kind of government that we have in Benue State today,” Ortom said. He further accused Alia of involvement in previous incidents in the state, including an episode involving the office of the Chief Judge.
“Governor Alia has been doing it. Governor Alia was one person who said, ‘No Alia, no Benue,’ and went to remove a Chief Judge through these thugs. Alia sent tippers with loads of sand to block the Chief Judge’s office. He has been saying that if nobody accepts him, he will not accept any other person,” Ortom alleged.
The former governor also challenged Alia to deny knowledge of the blockade under oath. “I say that it is unfortunate that somebody who is supposed to be a reverend father is telling lies. Can he come out and swear by the Bible that he claims to be a reverend priest and say that he was not aware of what happened yesterday? It was a deliberate attempt. He did it. Ask any other person. Alia himself, the governor of Benue State, is involved in this matter. He cannot deny that. I am not supporting Peter Obi. But it is wrong,” Ortom said.
Meanwhile, former Bayelsa State Governor and NDC national leader Seriake Dickson called for a thorough investigation into the incident and the prosecution of anyone found responsible. Speaking on Arise TV’s “Newsnight” on Wednesday, September 9, Dickson said allegations that government officials were involved should be investigated to determine whether they were true.
“This happening, while campaigns have officially started, sends a very dangerous signal, and the point has to be made clearly that this is not only condemnable, it is criminal. This is rascality of the highest order, and this is intolerable. There has to be punishment for this, so that we can say, well, however bad things may have gone in this country, we can’t accept this to go on. Otherwise, we may have a situation where candidates will be attacked everywhere, or people will be encouraged wrongly to think or assume that a presidential candidate, or even any other candidate or any other Nigerian, needs a visa of some kind to be able to participate in any activity he or she wants to, or to visit any state,” Dickson said. He argued that Nigerian citizens do not require permission to travel to another state and said the use of thugs to stop a presidential candidate was unacceptable.
“No Nigerian citizen, by our Constitution and our laws, needs anyone’s permission or approval to visit a state. More so, when we are dealing with a presidential candidate, a high-profile personality, at a period of political campaigns, you stop the man with thugs. No, that is not encouraging. It sounds almost obscene. It tells where we have gone as a country, but we must speak against it,” he said. Dickson also said the NDC had notified the Benue State Commissioner of Police about Obi’s visit before the incident.
“We have just listened to the remarks that the Commissioner of Police made, even though we were all concerned about what steps the police took at that venue, or to prevent it. One of the first things I asked when it occurred, I called the national chairman and asked, was there notification to the state authorities? And they brought a copy of a letter, a letter by the state chairman to the Commissioner of Police,” he said. He argued that notifying the Commissioner of Police amounted to informing the relevant state security authorities.
“Once you have informed the Commissioner of Police about the visit or activities of a politician or a high-profile personality, that is to be treated as information to the state authorities because the Commissioner of Police is the chief law enforcement officer of every state,” Dickson said. Dickson said the party planned to formally petition the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation over the incident.
“I’m pleased with the steps they have taken. I’m not surprised, but steps should have been taken to prevent it. By tomorrow, there will be a formal petition from our party to the Inspector-General and then to the Attorney-General of the Federation. And I think we have gotten to a point, before campaigns really kick off, for even the President of the country to weigh in on this,” he said. He added that President Bola Tinubu had a responsibility to help protect Nigeria’s democratic system beyond his role as a political party leader.
“He is sitting at the apex of the political system, and he’s not just President of the APC, he’s not just President of a particular set of people. He is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and his job is not to talk about economic policies, which we disagree with. His job is not just political stability and security matters, which they are not doing well either. But part of the duties and responsibilities of the President in our system includes the preservation and protection of the democratic order and the democratic system,” Dickson said.
