Reps condemn attack on Ortom, say offenders must face justice

Members of the House of Representatives have condemned the attack on Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom.

The lawmakers condemned the incident when the matter came up during plenary on Tuesday at the lower chamber of the National Assembly in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

They described the attack on the governor as an indication of anarchy and full-scale lawlessness in the country.

The lawmakers, however, commended President Muhammadu Buhari for promptly ordering an investigation into the incident.

They also called on the security agencies to ensure that those involved after the investigation were brought to justice, to serve as a deterrent to others.

The attack on Governor Ortom occurred on Saturday last week at Tyo Mu along the Makurdi-Gboko Road in Makurdi Local Government Area of the state.

Recounting how it occurred, the governor had told reporters that gunmen numbering about 15 trailed him to the riverbank where he was on foot.

The governor said his security details, who were just about six in number, swiftly responded to the attack and repelled the assailants after which they provided cover for him to return to safety.

Similarly, a petition by a group of Tiv indigenes from Benue State in the diaspora which generated controversy last week has been laid before the House.

The petition was presented by the lawmaker representing Gwer East/ Gwer West Constituency of Benue, Mark Gbillah, during the plenary presided by the Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila.

It was filed by a group – Mzough U Tiv Amerika (MUTA) on the insecurity in Benue, Nasarawa, and Taraba States.

Gbillah informed his colleagues that he was submitting the petition on behalf of the group because Tiv indigenes of the affected states had been sacked from their ancestral lands.

At the plenary held on March 11, the lawmaker had attempted to present the petition, but it was rejected by the Deputy Speaker of the House, Idris Wase, who presided in the absence of the speaker.

Wase had declared that Nigerians in the diaspora have no right to send petitions to the House on issues happening in Nigeria.

He has since denied his action despite compelling video evidence.