Don’t Tamper With Ortom’s Senatorial Ambition, Group Warns Ayu

A group, Benue People of Conscience (B-PoC) has warned that any attempt to tamper with the senatorial ambition of Governor Samuel Ortom will face stiff resistance.

The group which is reacting to the alleged statement credited to the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Iyorchia Ayu, who reportedly said he had the power to stop the ambition of any governor seeking for election.

The group while rooting for Ayu’s resignation asked him to withdraw his threat against Governor Ortom over his senatorial ambition.

The group, which spoke through their chairman, John Orshio, and secretary Tersoo Iorbee, said “B-POC wants to stress that there will be consequences if the PDP national chairman makes any attempt to tamper with the senatorial ambition of the governor.

According to the group, “it came as a shock to us last weekend when we heard that the national chairman of the PDP, Senator Ayu, had threatened to stop the Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, from contesting for the senatorial seat after he completes his second term.”

While lamenting that the group was very surprised that such threat was coming from the chairman said “we all know how Ayu became the party’s chairman against all odds, due to the support of the governor.”

They said, “In fact, Senator Ayu was literally exhumed from the ‘grave of politics’ by Governor Ortom and placed on the exalted seat of party chairman. And for Ayu to now turn against the governor amounts to biting the very finger that fed him”

“We had expected that since the PDP national chairman had promised to vacate his seat in the event that the presidential candidate of the party emerged from the North, he should have honourably resigned his position, but what he is doing now is exposing himself more. So we advise Senator Ayu to do the needful so as to print his name in gold and also retain his integrity instead of allowing the matter to drag this long.

The group insisted that “to make matters worse, Senator Ayu is enmeshed in allegations of fraud concerning the finances that accrued to the party during the PDP primaries and he has dodged every attempt to make available the accounts of the party for scrutiny.

“B-POC believes that clearing himself off the allegation of impropriety would have placed Ayu on the higher pedestal, but by this singular act, the national chairman of the PDP, is telling the whole world that the Tiv people cannot be trusted, nor taken for their words.

“Even though, we are apolitical, our advice to Senator Ayu is that he should honourably step aside, for the sake of the Tiv nation and Benue State and redeem the name of the Tiv nation. This act would further serve to boost the chances of the Benue people, particularly, Tiv nation.”