TheNewsGuru

Tag: Benue

  • Tears as teenage rape victim, Ochanya is buried in Benue

    Tears as teenage rape victim, Ochanya is buried in Benue

    There was uncontrollable tears on Friday in Benue State as Ochanya Obaje, a 13-year-old girl, who died on October 17 after being raped allegedly by a lecturer of Benue State Polytechnic, Andrew Ogbuja, and his son, Victor, was buried.

    She was buried in her hometown, Ogene Amejo, Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State.

    A family member of the deceased who only identified himself as Innocent, in a telephone interview on Saturday, said the family calls for fair prosecution of the suspects.

    “It was sad to see the little girl laid to rest. We call for the sanction of the lecturers by the school where he works. Sexual molestation was what the victim experienced. It is a sad thing for us.”

    Recall that the victim, a Junior Secondary School 1 student at the Federal Government College, Gboko, Benue State, died from complications of five years of anal and vaginal rape which led to Vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) and other health complications.

    This occurred when she was living with the family.

    While Ogbuja was arrested by the police, arraigned before a Makurdi Upper Area Court in August 2018 and remanded in prison, his son fled.

    The death has led to protests by several civil society organisations in Abuja, Makurdi and other parts of Nigeria.

    Ogbuja has been remanded in prison till the next date of hearing of the matter in court on November 29.

     

  • Benue will pay any amount adopted as minimum wage – Ortom assures workers

    Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, has promised to pay any amount agreed upon by the negotiating committee on minimum wage.

    Ortom stated this on Tuesday in Makurdi, when members of Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, and other sister unions visited him to register their support for the upward review of wages.

    The News Agency of Nigeria, reports that the Organised Labour has proposed a minimum wage of N30,000, vowing to shut down the country if the demand was not met.

    Ortom, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Terwase Orbunde, said that he was not against the upward review of workers’ minimum wages “in spite of the current economic challenges bedevilling the country”.

    “I will work in line with the outcome of the new minimum wage committee.

    “I am known for championing improved welfare for workers. I did it when I was the Chairman of Guma Local Government Area.

    “When I came on board as governor, primary school teachers were not receiving the N18,000.00 minimum wage. I stepped up their salaries without waiting for them to mount pressure on me to do so.

    “I wanted them to be at par with other civil servants in the State.

    “They did not march in protest before I increased their salaries. I am not against a better life for workers,” he said.

  • I will pay any amount adopted as minimum wage – Ortom

    Benue governor Samuel Ortom has promised to pay any amount agreed upon by the negotiating committee on minimum wage.
    Ortom stated this on Tuesday in Makurdi, when members of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and other sister unions visited him to register their support for the upward review of wages.
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the Organised Labour has proposed a minimum wage of N30,000, vowing to shut down the country if the demand was not met.
    Ortom, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Terwase Orbunde, said that he was not against the upward review of workers’ minimum wages “in spite of the current economic challenges bedeviling the country”.
    “I will work in line with the outcome of the new minimum wage committee.
    “I am known for championing improved welfare for workers. I did it when I was the Chairman of Guma Local Government Area.
    “When I came on board as governor, primary school teachers were not receiving the N18,000.00 minimum wage. I stepped up their salaries without waiting for them to mount pressure on me to do so.
    “I wanted them to be at par with other civil servants in the State.
    “They did not march in procession before I increased their salaries. I am not against a better life for workers,” he said.
    NLC president Ayuba Wabba, who was represented on the visit by the National Auditor, Simon Anchaver, had earlier urged state and federal governments to accept the N30,000 new minimum wage to avert a total shut down of the country on Nov.6.
    The State Chairman, TUC, Mr Ordue Tartenger, in his remarks, said that workers should not be forced to protest before they could get basic demands.
    Tartenger argued that the minimum wage had to be reviewed upwards because the prices of goods, including fuel, had gone up.
    “Money has lost its value; prices of all items have gone up and workers cannot afford basic needs of their families,” he fumed.
    NAN

  • Herdsmen planning to attack Benue again – Ortom raises alarm

    Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, on Friday raised the alarm that herdsmen have threatened to unleash fresh attacks in Benue State.
     
    In a statement issued by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, the herdsmen had sent a message to the people of Mbagwen community in Guma Local Government Area of the state.
    The governor’s alarm is coming after the recent attack on Tse Ado village in the same Guma LGA where herdsmen killed two people in their farm.
     
    Ortom said, “Herdsmen have sent a message to the people of Mbagwen community in Guma Local Government Area that they will attack in a matter of days. This was confirmed by the Council Chairman of Guma.
     
    “Two days ago, herdsmen drove the people of Tse-Ado and the surrounding villages out of their homes after they killed two farmers at Angela community.
     
    “The herdsmen had occupied communities in parts of Guma and Logo after chasing away members of those communities and killing many.
     
    “The threats are coming on the heels of the return of some internally displaced persons to their ancestral homes.
     
    “The question is; why are the attacks resuming at a time the harvest season is here? We suspect that the planned invasion is targeted at preventing the people from harvesting the few crops they were able to cultivate amid the mindless attacks which took place earlier in the year.”
     
    WhiIe drawing the attention of the Force Commander of Operation Whirl Stroke, Major General Adeyemi Yekini, to the threat, the governor through his CPS called on the commander not to take the latest threat of the attack lightly.
     
    He commended the Commander, officers, and men of Operation Whirl Stroke for the great job they had done to ensure the return of the IDPs to their communities and urged them to move swiftly to forestall the evil agenda of the armed herdsmen and their sponsors.
     

  • Boat mishap: Benue Govt. confirms 20 persons, 17 motorcycles missing

    Boat mishap: Benue Govt. confirms 20 persons, 17 motorcycles missing

    Rev. Jacob Aernyi, the Special Adviser to Benue Governor on Religious Affairs and Civil Society, has sympathised with the families of victims of a boat mishap, in which no fewer than 20 persons were missing.
    Aernyi told newsmen that he got details of the incident on Thursday in his office in Makurdi through the Secretary, Buruku River Workers’ Union, Mr Samuel Nakombo.
    He described the incident at River Buruku, where many lives and property were lost as very unfortunate and called for more proactive measures by the Federal Government.
    The special adviser said a ship conveying more than 20 passengers and carrying some Bajaj motorcycles was on sail on Wednesday evening when the ugly incident occurred.
    He said that more than 20 passengers were still missing while about 17 Bajaj motorcycles were yet to be recovered.
    The special adviser noted with dismay the continued loss of lives and property at River Buruku, saying it was high time adequate measures be taken to curb the mishaps.
    He recalled that in December 2013, a similar incident had claimed many lives.
    Aernyi called on the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency, construct a solid bridge at River Buruku to prevent future occurrences.
    He enjoined the affected families to take solace in the fact that all mortals on earth are living on a temporary basis and prayed God to console the families.

  • 2019: Why majority of Benue residents oppose Buhari’s re-election – Ortom

    Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has revealed why ‘the majority’ of Benue residents are opposed to the re-election bid of President Muhammadu Buhari.
    While explaining that the people of the state have ‘nothing against Fulani people’ as it is being insinuated, he adduced reasons for the Benue people’s alleged discontent with the President.
    Ortom made this known in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Makurdi and signed by his Special Adviser on Media and ICT, Mr. Tahav Agerzua.
     
    “We have lived with the Fulani people for ages; we have nothing against them. Even the Fulani people know that we have nothing against them,” Ortom said; recalling that Benue people voted overwhelmingly for former presidents Shehu Shagari and Umaru Yar’Adua in 1979, 1983 and 2007 respectively.
     
    “We also voted for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, but while Shagari and Yar’Adua reciprocated the support they received by patronising Benue people through federal appointments and projects, President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC have failed to register any positive federal presence in the state,” Ortom said.
     
    “But from my findings, majority of Benue residents are opposed to the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC, because they have failed to register any positive federal presence in the state.
     
    “Many people also feel that the APC-led Federal Government has failed to secure lives and property,’’ he added.
     
    The governor promised to work with his predecessor, Dr. Gabriel Suswam, to bring development to the state.
     
    The statement said that Ortom and Suswam had put the past behind them and had resolved to work together.
     
    In the meantime, Suswam has appealed to Ortom’s close aides to educate the people on the governor’s achievements and his challenges.
     
    He also urged Ortom to entrust his fate in God’s hands so that the creator would always resolve challenges in the governor’s favour.

  • Militia kill policeman, 2 others in Benue – Police

    Militia kill policeman, 2 others in Benue – Police

    The Police in Benue on Thursday said a police officer and two other persons were killed in a gun battle between Shitte militia (Gana Boys) and security operatives in Zaki Biam.
    The command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Moses Yamu, confirmed this in a statement in Makurdi.
    He said that the deceased policeman and the two others were confirmed dead at the hospital following gunshot injuries from the gun duel.
    Yamu stated that three other persons who sustained injuries in the incident were receiving treatment at Light of Grace Hospital in Zaki Biam.
    “Shitte militia dressed in PMF and Special Forces uniforms” rode into Zaki Biam town through bush paths on Bajaj motorcycle believed to be running away from Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) Force for safety.
    “The Gana boys were forced out of their enclave by OPWS Forces and they were running into the town for refuge.
    “The DPO of Ukum Division quickly alerted and mobilised the security forces around in order to repel the militia.
    “An intense gun duel ensued in which regrettably, one policeman, who was fatally injured and his rifle taken away by the militia was rushed to the hospital alongside two yet-to-be-identified civilians.
    “The civilians, a woman and a small boy, were confirmed dead at the hospital, and three other persons who sustained injuries are currently receiving treatment at Light of Grace Hospital, Zaki Biam,” he said.
    The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Ene Okon, assured the public, especially people of Ukum and environs that effort had been intensified to bring the criminal elements to justice.
    NAN

  • Fraud: Court strikes out Benue govt’s application challenging EFCC’s powers

    The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has dismissed a request by the Benue State government challenging the powers of anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to investigate alleged fraud in the state.
    The judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, ruled that the EFCC is legally empowered to investigate alleged fraud in any part of the country, regardless of the location.
    According to the judge, the enabling act, guiding the EFCC does not limit its powers only to federal government agencies.
    Dimgba said the doctrines of neutrality and impartiality as it relates to the EFCC, makes it mandatory for the commission to treat all agencies of government equally, especially with regards to the disbursement of public funds.
    “Public institutions like the first defendant must not only be impartial or neutral, but must be seen to be so.”
    He, therefore, threw out the application for lacking in merit.
    The Benue State government had approached the court with a request that the EFCC be prevented from further investigations into the Benue State government’s activities.
    The applicant’s lawyer, Emeka Etiaba, asked the court to declare the EFCC’s investigations illegal, on the grounds that the commission was allegedly overstepping its boundaries.
    Etiaba argued that as a federal government establishment, the EFCC lacked the power to investigate alleged fraud in states.
    He told journalists after the court ruling on Monday that his client would appeal the court judgment.

  • BREAKING: Benue PDP returns Ortom for 2019

    BREAKING: Benue PDP returns Ortom for 2019

    Delegates at the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) convention in Benue State have returned Governor Samuel Ortom as the standard bearer of the party ahead of 2019 gubernatorial election.
    Ortom emerged the party’s candidate after pulling the total of 2,210 votes to defeat his closest rival, Surv. John Tondu who pulled 475 votes.
    The election which was rigorous and tortuous, was held in a most peaceful and transparent atmosphere.
    According to the returning officer of the election, Hajia Zainab Maina, “the election was conducted in line with laid down rules and procedures”.
    In his acceptance speech, Governor Ortom promised to unite the state and design a blueprint that will spur developments across the state.
    Governor Ortom said he remains committed to “the leadership that is anchored on transparency and the fear of God”.
    He called on the people of Benue and Nigeria to join the PDP and help salvage the Nigerian situation.
    “I called on Benue people and all Nigerians to join hands with the PDP, having apologised for the wrongs of the past, so we can rescue this country.
    “I was in sojourn in APC and there it was very difficult for me to exercise my responsibility, but here I am, now a free man. This marks the end of politics of godfatherism in Benue.
    “The government of Benue state shall be run by the People, where everyone shall be stakeholders, all hands must be on deck, to move the state forward”, the Governor said.
    Ortom also thanked the People of Benue, especially, the leaders and delegates of the party as well as the co-aspirants, for making it possible for his emergency as the PDP candidate for 2019 election.

  • 70 per cent of vehicles on Benue roads not registered – BIRS

    More than 70 per cent of vehicles on Benue roads are not registered, according to Mr Terzungwe Atser, Acting Executive Chairman, Benue Board of Internal Revenue Services (BIRS).

    Atser, who spoke on Wednesday in Makurdi, when he led BIRS and Vehicle Inspection Officials (VIO) on an enforcement exercise, also said that majority of vehicle owners and drivers were not licensed to drive.

    He said that BIRS had commenced an inspection of vehicle particulars and would intensify efforts to apprehend defaulters.

    “The operation will continue until we are sure that all vehicles are registered as specified by the law,” he said.

    According to him, the 23 Local Government Areas of the state will be covered to ensure that there was no hiding place for defaulters.

    NAN