BEVERLY HILLS, June 03, (THEWILL) – Imminent danger seems to be looming in Benue State as the state’s governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom and top leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are alleged to have resorted to dirty tactics to win the leadership of the State House of Assembly against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The PDP enjoys the majority in the yet-to-be inaugurated 8th Assembly of the state, with 15 members-elect, while the APC has 14 with the Labour Party (LP) having only one seat.
But even the LP member-elect, Hon. Tor Aye, is widely believed to have opted to be counted on the side of the PDP, given that he won his election through the support he enjoyed from members of the party.
It was gathered that following the termination of the 7th Assembly on Tuesday, it became mandatory by law that the new Assembly be inaugurated immediately to forestall a lacuna , being that the days following are working days.
But Gov. Ortom instead opted to shift the inauguration of the new Assembly to Friday, leaving the state and its people to go three full working days without a legislature, a situation observers of the development say is similar to a military dictatorship.
Impeccable sources in the state alleged that the shift in date of inauguration is to give the governor and APC leaders more time to perfect their strategies against the PDP members-elect, which include offers of bribes and outright threats of physical harm.
The Benue State governor is also said to have held series of meetings with some members-elect of the PDP whom he allegedly offered the sum of N5 million and a brand-new Toyota Corolla car each in return for their votes in the race for the Speakership of the House. The Toyota Corolla cars are said to be parked at the governor’s private residence in Makurdi.
Notable members-elect of the PDP are also said to have gone into hiding following death threats they received allegedly from an anonymous caller who warned that all enemies of ‘change’ will be dealt with, and allegedly cited the recent assassination of the PDP Youth Leader of Ushongo Local Government Area, late Hon. Ternenge Gbuuga (Andoor), as example.
Watchers of political events in the state have expressed worries that Gov. Ortom may have started on the wrong footing with the shifting of the Assembly’s inauguration without minding the constitutional implications of his actions.
Others query the morality of the governor’s actions in allegedly offering bribes to the PDP members-elect, considering that he won election professing to be a God-fearing man and also promising to bring about change in leadership style and conduct at the number one office in the state.
Meanwhile, Gov. Ortom and top APC leaders in the state are said to be desperate in their quest to win the leadership of the incoming Assembly. They are said to have drafted some prominent Benue indigenes holding sensitive federal appointments to influence and win over some PDP members-elect.
But the PDP members-elect are said to have so far maintained their unity, and it is being speculated that they are determined to win the leadership of the House which will give to them six principal offices, namely the Speaker and Deputy, the Majority Leader and Deputy, the Majority Whip and Deputy, as well as the pick of the composition and leadership of the House standing committees.
A notable PDP member-elect, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, vowed that the PDP would use its numerical majority to win the leadership of the House, stressing that in achieving that, they will be deepening the democratic culture as well as uplifting the image and standard of the legislature in the state.
