Ortom: Buhari promised to be for all Nigerians but it appears he is for Fulani herders

Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue state, says President Muhammadu Buhari promised to be for all Nigerians but it appears he is for Fulani herders.

In his inaugural speech when he assumed power in 2015, the president promised to be for ”everybody and belong to nobody”.

Addressing a press conference in Makurdi on Wednesday, Ortom said nothing shows that the president is representing the interest of all Nigerians.

The governor said no Benue indigene is a slave to any Fulani person.

“Mr President, in case you are listening to me, I want you to know that your people, Nigerians, you promised Nigerians that you will be fair to all,” The PUNCH quoted him as saying.

“You said that you will be for everybody and for nobody, and now it will appear that you are for Fulani people because nothing is coming from you to give the people confidence that you are their President.

“You are the president of the federal republic of Nigeria, you are not the President of Fulani.

“You are the President of everybody and I owe you a duty as a stakeholder in this nation to let you know that what is going on is wrong and this has the potential of dividing this country which will not be in the interest of anyone –some of us believe in the unity of this country.”

The governor said he asked the federal government to allow the licensing of AK 47 rifles so that Nigerians can defend themselves.

“That was why I called the Federal Government to licence me and many others to have guns, to have AK-47 too. Because if I have my AK-47 and a Fulani man is coming there, he knows that I have and he has, then we can fight each other,” he said.

“But you can’t disarm me and arm a Fulani man. This is not right, the federal government is biased, it is unfair. The failure in security is caused by the federal government.”