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| President Buhari and Governor Samuel Ortom in Makurdi |
President Muhammadu Buhari was told in Makurdi today that the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, violated his order that he should shift base to Benue State, at the height of the bloody clashes between herdsmen and farmers.
At the town hall meeting held in Makurdi today, Buhari was told that Idris did not even spend 24 hours in the state.
An apparently surprised Nigerian leader remarked:
“I am not aware that the I-G did not spend 24 hours in the state as directed by me, I am getting to know this in this meeting.”
He also said the meeting was not the best place to expose the inefficiency of his appointees and appealed to the Benue people to exercise restraint and live in peace with their neighbours.
President Buhari told the meeting attended by farmers, herdsmen and government officials including Senators and Members of the House of Representatives, that he was doing his best to tackle insecurity in the land.
He denied insinuations that he overlooked the killings that happened in Benue, saying he is genuinely worried over them.
He said rice imports had dropped by 90 per cent and said states were massively involved in rice cultivation.
On his part, Gov Ortom appealed to the president to upgrade the ongoing military exercise in the state tagged ” Ayem A kpatema” to an operation to effectively curb herdsmen attacks.
”If the exercise is upgraded to an operation, it will assist greatly in ending the incessant attacks and senseless killings by herdsmen,” he said
He urged Benue people to exercise restraints and learn to live in peace with other people.
He said that many states in the federation were now involved in massive cultivation of rice.
He reiterated his call for the arrest of the leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore for being responsible for the killings.
Ortom still maintained that ranching was the best option for cattle breeding in the country.
He also called on the federal government to take over the management of the Benue University Teaching Hospital, College of Education Katsina-Ala and Benue Polytechnic Ugbokolo.
Representative of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Benue Chapter, Shettima Mohammed, denied responsibility for the Benue attacks.
He said the association was peace loving and the exact opposite of its public presentation by government officials.
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