Samuel Ortom, the Governor of Benue State, has confirmed that he was attacked by alleged militia herdsmen on his farm in Tyo-mu, along the Makurdi-Gboko road, today.
After the incident, Governor Ortom told journalists at the Benue Peoples House that as he was inspecting the farm, militia herders dressed in black ambushed him and his security men and opened fire.
He claimed that repelling the attack required the quick response of his security aides, while he ran a long distance to escape unharmed.
The Governor bemoaned the fact that the attack occurred just days after Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore’s leadership met in Yola and singled him out as a thorn in their flesh who needed to be removed, claiming that he had received intelligence to that effect.
Governor Ortom stated that his life is in God’s hands and that no Fulani militia has the authority to take it without God’s permission, adding that no matter how many times they try, they will fail.
He indicated that the state’s ranching law will not be repealed for any reason, and that no amount of intimidation would be enough to persuade his administration to reverse the people of Benue’s opposition to open grazing.
The Governor stated that he would send a petition to the President and security chiefs against Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, claiming that allowing their leadership to walk around freely with security personnel attached to them was not in the country’s best interests.