The Benue State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described as disgraceful remarks made by Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Mr. George Akume, absolving Fulani herdsmen of guilt in killings of farmers in Benue State and also for describing those in support of the ban on open grazing as “out of their minds.”
The PDP claimed that the Minister during a wedding at NKST Central Church Wannune in Tarka Local Government Area, last Saturday, condemned the promulgation of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law, labelling it an agenda to chase Fulani people away from the state.
The PDP also alleged that the Minister stated that he did not enact anti-open grazing law when he was governor and Benue was very peaceful and Fulani people did not kill anyone and that as long as the anti-open grazing law remains in force, herdsmen will continue to kill Benue people.
The party in a press statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Bemgba Iortyom, said “Benue PDP observes that as can be heard in the video recording, Akume asked Benue people to make boki (friend) with Fulani. He said Fulani are the best boki for Benue people. He went on to list the things that a Fulani President Muhammadu Buhari has done for Benue people such as making him Minister, giving appointments as university chancellors to Tor Tiv and Och’Idoma among other things like federal board appointments to some APC members in Benue.
“It is of grave concern to the party that from the video recording it is evident that Akume has vowed to constitute himself into an enemy, not only to the administration of Governor Samuel Ortom, but also to the people of Benue State.
The party wondered how a man who was a two-time governor of the state, three time Senator and now Minister could speak with such carelessness and also castigate a law which he was part of its formulation.
“So Akume has the nerves to look us in the face and say that Fulani will not stop killing our people until we allow them to have free access to our God-given lands? He wants us to repeal the law banning open-grazing just so that cows of his aboki can destroy more of our farms?
The party frowned on the Minister’s “highly unpatriotic stance” and admonishes him to know that he is not the first man to be made Minister from Benue state. He has said openly that the people attacked themselves and ran to the camps. He has said many times that Fulani herders do not attack Benue people.”
The PDP described the utterances as “indeed most disgraceful and unfortunate” saying “Those in IDPs also voted for Akume two times as governor and three times as senator, yet he has now turned round to reward their love with hatred and their votes with blatant accusations.
But in a swift reaction, the All Progressive Congress (APC), in the state, said the PDP was becoming more desperate by renewing their “tantrums against their leader Senator George Akume.
In a statement signed by the Caretaker Publicity Secretary, APC, Benue State, James Ornguga, said it was unfortunate that the “PDP in Benue, grasping at straws, has reintroduced their pre-2019 dummy of foisting unfounded allegations on our Leader, Senator Dr George Akume, Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs over matters relating to herdsmen attacks thereby scouting disaffection.
“The PDP camp in Benue faced with overwhelming depleting population, loss of confidence and exhaustion of all available lies in their arsenal, has resorted to petty, frivolous and even defamatory remarks against Senator Akume and the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the hope of whipping up dangerous sentiments that would arouse public anger against our party.
“To put the records straight, Senator Akume has not been to NKST Central Church, Wannune in recent times; the APC leader only attended a wedding reception in Tarka last Sunday, away from the church during which he identified with the couple and took time to enumerate the good deeds of his principal, President Muhammadu Buhari towards Benue; one of which is the siting of the Federal Polytechnic, Wannune in the minister’s hometown.
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The statement said during the speech, Senator Akume had urged the people to grow above tribal sentiments and see the Fulanis and any other ethnicities first, as Nigerians, then, as brothers.
“The Honourable Minister established that the relative peace witnessed in Benue at the moment was made possible through President Buhari’s military interventions of “Exercise Ayem a Kpatuma” and “Operation Whirl Stroke.”
“He condemned the killings by herdsmen and other intra- community hostilities in Benue that have claimed many lives and sued for expeditious action from government to end the killings, adding that Gov. Ortom was left with two years of his administration and that was enough time to turn things around for the good of Benue, rather than promoting the purported islamization and Fulanization theory he has been advancing to court hatred against the President who is doing great projects in Benue State.
“It was while making reference to the hitherto agelong cordial relationship between the Tiv and the Fulanis that the APC leader referenced that even while he was the governor of Benue state between 1999 and 2007, the relationship between the Tiv and Fulanis was still appreciable, at a time the anti open grazing law was not yet in force.”
The party therefore regretted that the PDP has hurriedly accorded a different interpretation to the Minister’s harmless statement, insinuating that Senator Akume had called for an outright repeal of the Open-Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law of the state saying the PDP should stop using Senator Akume’s name as a meal ticket and concentrate on executing at least one landmark project that would outlive their master’s administration.
