The Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, during the weekend, carpets his Kaduna counterpart, Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State for saying he (Ortom) has failed as a governor.
El-Rufai had thrown the first salvo against his Benue counterpart during a webinar on Friday.
El-Rufai said, “I know him (Ortom) and he is not somebody I take very seriously, frankly. He has other issues of governance that he is using the Federal Government as a punching bag to divert attention from his failures.
“Go and find out how many months’ salaries are being owed teachers and public servants in Benue State then you can understand a lot of what Ortom is doing.”
Not taking such words lightly, the Benue governor, responded in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase. He said in the statement issued on Saturday:
“We want to believe that El-Rufai was wrongly quoted. A man who has failed in several aspects as governor of Kaduna has no moral justification to accuse another governor.
“A governor who chose a Muslim deputy in a state where Christians have a huge population is certainly not one to preach unity and peaceful coexistence. El-Rufai’s attack on Governor Ortom is merely to make him look good before the Presidency.
“He has apparently fallen out of favour at the Villa and wants to use Governor Ortom as a launch pad back to reckoning. This is a man who has insulted almost every prominent Nigerian, including the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and former President Olusegun Obasanjo, a man who is his former boss and one who brought him to limelight.”
“He insulted the then President Goodluck Jonathan, and publicly supported terrorists attacking parts of the country.
“His statements on the abduction of Chibok girls and several other acts of terrorism are still fresh in our minds. El-Rufai is on the record to have said repeatedly that Fulani people must retaliate any wrong done to them, no matter how long it takes.
“Is Governor Ortom responsible for El-Rufai’s inability to ensure peace in Kaduna State where bandits have taken over some communities while kidnappings and killings occur on a daily basis? El-Rufai admitted paying Fulani herdsmen whom he invited from other West African countries in the name of stopping attacks in Southern Kaduna.”
Governor Ortom said Benue people did not take El-Rufai seriously. He described el-Rufai as “one of the real enemies of the country who do not hide their divisive tendencies by elevating nepotism and ethnicity above the good values that have held Nigeria together over the decades.
“A man who has no regard for humanity does not deserve our attention. Nasir El-Rufai is a sycophant, ethnic champion and religious bigot who hates anyone who does not share the same faith with him. He is among the very few persons who have misled President Muhammadu Buhari.”
