The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has lampooned the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Benue State for launching an attack against the state Governor, Samuel Ortom over his proposal in the 2020 Budgetary Estimates to build an airport in the state.
A statement signed by the State Publicity Secretary of PDP, Bemgba Iortyom, quoted the APC as saying they are “astounded with yet another ….declaration by the Governor…that he would convert the…Benue Cargo Airport…and build another airport in two years.”
The APC had also said they are “deeply worried at the spontaneous nature with which the PDP administration in the state emotionally declares serious policy statements with gusto, yet, fails to execute any without compunction.”
The PDP said while the opposition party has a perfect right to hold an opinion about the policies and actions of Ortom’s administration, they should be reminded that the same Cargo Airport project which they today lampoon the Ortom administration over was conceived, and initiated under their watch as the sponsoring political platform of the administration then.
“If they had guided the administration right the project would not have ended up a “white elephant project” like they now seek to derogatorily label it.
“It is, therefore, either a reflection of hypocrisy or lack of depth of thought, or a combination of both, for the opposition party to now seek to occupy the chair of the critic over that same project.”
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The party noted that instead of hurrying to the media to castigate a project which is still a part of the proposals in the budgetary estimate, the APC ought to mobilise their members in the state legislature where the airport project is up for consideration and raise their objections to the project through them.
The PDP however, said the proposed airport project, if found desirable by Benue people through their representatives in the legislature, will be executed by the Ortom administration in line with the provisions which will be made for it by law.
Benue APC had also claimed that Ortom, is the “governor with the highest number of non fulfilled promises” and cited the non completion of the Origbo-Imamde-Akpu-Gbajimba Road in evidence.
But in a swift reaction, the PDP observed that it will be lame to take non completion of the said road project and other ongoing projects to be non performance on the part of the Ortom administration.
The party named the Ahmadu Bello Way in Gboko, Igbor-Ikpa-Wannune Road, the Mobile Barracks Road in Makurdi, the Och’Idoma Road in Otukpo among other road projects at various stages of completion and ongoing work as proof of the Ortom administration’s commitment to the provision of critical infrastructure to the people of Benue State.
“The Ortom administration has as well been active in the provision of social amenities, with counterpart payments made to attract partnership funding in education where the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) recently awarded the latest tranche of contracts running into billions of naira for the construction of classrooms and office accommodation, as well as provision of furniture and learning aids in primary schools across the state.
