Politics

Assets Recovery in Benue: Facts of the Matter

By Dr Aondokaa Asambe 

Here comes the season of reuniting with long-time buddies and political allies.

It was Lida who first called the shots. Who am I not to follow suit? …and as Lida posits; “Nyamkyume wua Or wan ga.”

So, the opportunity presented itself for me and His Excellency, Samuel Ioraernyi Ortom to reunite at lunchtime on 14th July 2023. The last time we met while he was still governor was on the 26th of December 2015 on his farm in Gbajimba. I’m sure Iorliam Shija has that photograph.

I met a man who is having a good time for himself after a tedious eight-year sojourn as governor. He is fast recouping the lost energy with a fresh and fleshy look.

Discussions were on diverse issues but I elect to share with you Ortom’s narrative on the much-talked-about 32 vehicles allegedly recovered by Governor Alia’s Assets Recovery Committee.

First, the facility where the committee raided was bought by ORACLE from Gen. Gbehe Ikya’s family. It’s a workshop for refurbishing old vehicles which was set up and leased to Chief Emmanuel Viashima of LONDON LINE. That he (Ortom) is a mere customer of that company because there, his vehicles are serviced at a chargeable fee.

Yes, his vehicles are amongst the 32 vehicles purportedly recovered. He specifically mentioned 11 out of the 32 paraded vehicles and went further to mention the sources. The rest are not his’.

Before becoming a governor, Samuel Ortom served as National Auditor of the PDP and was appointed Chairman of the board of the Standards Organization of Nigeria, SON. He was allocated some official vehicles. As a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and based on the federal government’s monetization policy, he left with some vehicles attached to him. Again as governor between 2015 and 2019 (first term), he was entitled to the vehicles he had used during that time. These sets of vehicles constitute the 11 vehicles that were taken away by the Assets Recovery Committee. They were taken to that facility for upgrades and repairs.

He posits that new sets of vehicles were purchased for his use in his second term as governor between 2019 and 2023. That these vehicles too are his, based on the monetization policy introduced by the federal government of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Two tractors were on display amongst the assets paraded on social media. These tractors according to His Excellency, belongs to EUNICE SPRING OF LIFE FOUNDATION gifted them by a foreign Non-Governmental Organization (NGO).

My other takeaway and revealing information from this infamous (in the eyes of saints) lunchtime meeting with H.E. Samuel Ortom was that 32 vehicles were taken from the facility but only 30 allegedly made their way to Makurdi Government House. On this, my brother and friend Kapu T. Kapu had retorted on his Facebook timeline that something need to be recovered from the RECOVERY COMMITTEE.

It may interest you to know that, just like the former Zamfara State Governor, efforts are being legally pursued to recover these vehicles from the Assets Recovery Committee. Ortom gbe den kwagh na ga!

The fact that Ortom may not have met some of our expectations as governor does not mean every allegation against him must be taken hook, line, and sinker without a probe.

It will interest readers and those who will want to insult me to know that some of those in that committee too have government properties to be recovered. And they know it.

Once again, I unreservedly await insults from the gullible Benue public.

NB: I have been a critic all my life. I criticized George Akume as an individual and as a member of the Benue Proactive Coalition. I never spared Gabriel Suswam’s government, just like that of Samuel Ortom. I didn’t support Hyacinth Alia but he is now our Governor. And so he may not be an exception but above all, these people are not my enemies. 

All I want, like many others, is good governance. And I think HE Ortom has done his bit. Let’s move on without this drama. It won’t take us anywhere but rather create deep animosity not good for healthy development.

I come in peace!

benuemediaoffice (
)

Related Articles

Back to top button