NEWS
Why Atiku Is Angry With Me, Ortom Explains
Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the former vice president and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), according to former governor of Benue state Samuel Ortom, is upset with him over a number of things, including his membership in the G-5 Integrity Group, his insistence on a southern president, and the implementation of the grazing law in Benue state.
The former governor responded to a recent statement attributed to a Special Assistant on Public Communication to the PDP presidential candidate, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, who allegedly lambasted members of the G-5 group for working against the victory of the PDP Presidential candidate in the election, in a statement released on Wednesday in Makurdi by his media assistant, Terver Akase.
In the statement, Mr. Shaibu had alleged that the G-5 governors were only seeking relevance, appointments, and protection from prosecution stressing that the decision of the G-5 governors not to support Atiku had nothing to do with patriotism.
Debunking the claim, Mr. Akase said: “We read a statement credited to the former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, claiming that the immediate past Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom and his colleagues in the G-5 worked against him during the last election but have ongoing corruption cases at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC and are being protected by President Bola Tinubu.
“We are not sure that the Special Assistant on Public Communication to the PDP presidential candidate got his consent before making the statement; because if he did, he would have refrained from blaming the G-5 for his loss at the polls.
“Alhaji Atiku Abubakar ought to be worried more that he has gone into history as the first presidential candidate of a leading political party to be rejected by key stakeholders including five sitting Governors and many other members of his party.
“The question that should bother him is, why did the G-5 and other members of the Integrity Group reject his candidacy? The group stood for justice, equity and fairness that the 2023 presidency must go to the southern part of the country and Nigerians saw the indisputable facts contained in the position of the Integrity Group and voted for a presidential candidate from the south.
“Atiku is angry because Governor Ortom and his colleagues in the G-5 refused to be used by him as ‘Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs)’ to circumvent and thwart the resolve of Nigerians to produce a President from the southern region.
“Another reason for Atiku’s attack on Chief Ortom is the former Benue State Governor’s boldness to speak truth to his face and rebuke him for making unstatesmanlike comments regarding the killing of Benue people by Fulani herdsmen. Atiku is on record to have expressed bitterness towards Ortom for daring to enact a law to prohibit open grazing of livestock in the state.
“The former Vice President’s diatribe against Chief Ortom can therefore be understood as the manifestation of frustration for losing the 2023 election. His failure to humble himself and unite the PDP, opting to remain haughty even when the signals were clear that he was heading for defeat summarized his performance in the last election.”
“Atiku lacks the moral ground to accuse anyone else of corruption. The words of his erstwhile principal, the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo have remained indelible and incontrovertible.”
The statement referred to the book, ‘My Watch’ by former President Olusegun Obasanjo on pages 191-192 to buttress ex-Governor Ortom’s perception of the former Vice President.
According to Akase, “the role of anti-graft agencies is to investigate allegations of corruption. Whenever they invite someone, such a person has to honour the invitation. As a man who believes in the rule of law, Chief Ortom willingly visited EFCC when the Commission sought clarifications on the actions of his administration.
“We urge Nigerians to disregard the allegation by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar against the former Benue State Governor as it is unfounded and tantamount to cheap blackmail.”
Asma al-Assad, the wife of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who bravely battled breast cancer in 2019, has been struck with another health challenge.
The president’s office revealed in a statement on Tuesday that she has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia.
The statement said, “First Lady Asma al-Assad has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia.”
More to follow…………
Bandits launched an attack on Zurak village in the Bashar District of Wase local government area, Plateau State, on Monday at around 5 p.m., resulting in the death of over 40 individuals, including local vigilantes.
According to report, the assault took place while people were engaged in their daily routines.
Residents reported that they were unable to immediately report the incident due to poor communication networks in the area.
Sahpi’i Sambo, a local youth leader, confirmed the incident to Daily Trust, stating that the bandits arrived on motorcycles—two per bike—armed with sophisticated weapons, and began shooting indiscriminately.
He said “More than 40 people were killed while many injured. Residents of the village have fled to neighbouring communities for cover. As of yesterday, security personnel had not yet arrived at the community. It was deadly. ”
As of the time this report was filed, the spokesperson for the state police command, DSP Alabo Alfred, had not responded to inquiries.
A 61-year-old male Nigerian, with physical challenges, who has resided in the UK for 38 years, has deportation by the Home Office, staring him in the face.
Media reports indicate that Anthony Olubunmi George, migrated to the UK from Nigeria at the age of 24 back in 1986.
According to the Guardian UK, George has been law abiding throughout his unbroken stay in the UK, with a clean record, no criminal convictions.
However, in 2019, he experienced two strokes that had a significant impact on his ability to speak and move.
On his part, George maintains that he no longer has any immediate relatives residing in Nigeria.
His health challenge has exposed to several episodes of homelessness, which left him at the mercy of friends for shelter over the years.
George said, “I don’t know how many different sofas I’ve slept on – too many to count. I don’t have my life, living the way I’m living now. My health problems since I had my stroke are my biggest worry.
“All I’m asking for is some kindness from the Home Office.”
In this regard, George had made multiple applications for leave to remain in the UK, all of which have been denied by the Home Office, with the most recent rejection occurring on May 7, 2024.
In 2005, his previous solicitors submitted a falsified entry stamp in his passport which has since been reported to the police and the legal regulatory bodies.
The Guardian UK cites George as claiming to completely unaware of the passport stamp until several years later.
His present legal representatives trace George’s trauma to previous poor legal representation.
According to his current lawyer, Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors, George’s difficulties can be attributed to his poor past legal representation.
In their latest rejection, officials from the Home Office stated that the situation was not deemed to be an exceptional circumstance.
Counting the failure of his previous applications being on the shoulders of his lawyers, Kandiah has filed an appeal challenging the most recent denial.
Kandiah said, “My client has been living in limbo for 38 years, with no family, has suffered two strokes and has no family left in Nigeria.
“His situation is not just because of Home Office policies but also because of poor representation by previous solicitors who failed to uphold professional integrity and ethical standards.”
The Guardian UK cites a spokesperson for the Home Office, thus, “applications have to be considered on their merits in accordance with the immigration rules with the responsibility on applicants to demonstrate they meet these rules.”
George might not be alone in this, as the Guardian UK also reported the story of Nelson Shardey, a 74-year-old newsagent from Merseyside.
Shardey has been living in the UK since 1977 and was recently denied indefinite leave to remain by the Home Office, despite having spent the majority of his adult life in the country.
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