Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has reacted to statement credited to Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Force headquarters, Jimoh Moshood calling for his resignation.
The governor described Moshood’s statement as laughable, adding that IGP Ibrahim Idris is the drowning man who should resign.
Ortom spoke in a chat with newsmen at the Benue Peoples’ House, Makurdi on Tuesday.
His words: “As the chief security officer of Benue, I do not have the coercive powers to enforce the law, whereas the police and indeed the Inspector General of Police (IGP) who have the powers to enforce the law have failed in this regard.
“The Police high command should rather resign their appointments because they had failed in enforcing the law.
“It is the IGP that has failed to do the right thing that should be called a drowning man, it is the IGP that should resign.
“I am not a drowning man; I am doing what I was elected to do. Over 99 percent of Benue people are with me, I’m acting their script, so nobody should try to intimidate me.
“The IGP should resign because he has failed woefully. He doesn’t have the capacity.
“There are many good police officers who can take over that job and perform creditably by turning around the security architecture of this country and make things work and protect lives and property. That man has no business being the IGP.
“The IGP is the mouthpiece of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, he should resign his current position to serve full time in his new job.
Ortom further denied the police claim that the arrested militia members in his state are members of Benue Livestock Guards.
“Those people are not members of our Livestock Guard. It is just a planned thing.
“Fulani militia have come out in video to display the kind of weapons that they have and everyone has seen it; that is also not enough for the IGP to arrest these people.
“But he chose to declare that we have militia in Benue state. If we have militia in the state, will the herdsmen come and kill our people the way they did and are currently doing?
“It is because we are law-abiding. I think the people should have the right to defend themselves and not make themselves easy prey to be killed in their homes.
“So any lawful means you can adopt to defend yourself in Benue State, just go ahead. We are not going to wait for the inspector-general of police to do it because he has failed in his assignment.” Ortom added.
