Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of working for the Fulani tribe to take over Nigeria.
He made the allegation on Tuesday in reaction to the recent killing of residents allegedly by herdsmen in parts of the state.
“What is happening now, to me, is very clear; Mr President is just working for these Fulanis to take over the whole country.
“His body language is what is being played out,” the governor alleged while condemning the activities of herdsmen in the state.
He added, “The body language, the action and inaction of Mr President shows that he is only the President of Fulani people; I have known this.
“We are becoming a banana republic, if we have a president who gave the security agencies order to shoot at sight, whosoever is having AK-47 and the Minister of Defence came out to say that they cannot shoot at sight… so who is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces?”
Governor Ortom insisted that the activities of herdsmen in the country must be condemned while the people should come together to hold the President to account.
He decried that no fewer than 70 people have been killed in the last two weeks in three local governments of the state.
This came after seven Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in a camp in Abagena, a Makurdi suburb in Benue State, were killed by suspected herdsmen on Monday night.
The attackers stormed the community and destroyed many houses before moving into the camp.
One of the victims sustained injuries and later died at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital.
Eyewitnesses said the gunmen overpowered the security operatives at the camp and operated from midnight till 2 am unchallenged.
The camp, about 10 minutes from Makurdi, is located on Makurdi-Lafia road. It has 8,620 displaced persons.
Governor Samuel Ortom, who visited the camp after the incident, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians.
“Mr President must speak out and not Garba Shehu, his spokesman,” Ortom said.
“Mr President must rise up as he is the President of Nigeria with over 200 ethnic nationalities. He has taken an oath of office to protect lives and property and cannot afford to be aloof. He must address the nation and tell us where we are going,” Ortom said.
Ortom asked the President to declare a state of emergency on the deteriorating security situation.
“My colleagues, the governors, must rise and impress on the president to call a security summit, if possible, to declare a state of emergency on security so that all hands will be on deck to address the situation in the country.
“How do you reconcile a situation where Mr President gives an order to security agents to shoot at sight anyone illegally seen with AK47 and a minister counters it?” the governor lamented.
