- Ortom yesterday faulted the allegation that the attack was stage-managed as there was no reason to do so.
- The Benue State Governor said security aides, including those from other parts of the country witnessed the attack
- The army went to great lengths to track down the attackers.
The Military has stepped up efforts in hunting down Gunmen, suspected to be Herdsmen, who attacked Benue State Governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom, last Saturday, as troops combed forest and mounted surveillance around areas considered to be security flashpoints in the state.
Commander of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), Maj. Gen. Adeyemi Yekini, told reporters at the scene of the attack near Tyo-mu, along Makurdi-Gboko highway that troops had been deployed in the area and are currently combing the forest, which serves as a hideout for the assailants.
He said their makeshift camps had also been destroyed.
The Governor dismissed the allegation that the attack, which occurred during a visit to his farm, was stage-managed, warning that 2023 general elections will not hold if insecurity persists.
In addition, the House of Representatives has asked the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services (DSS) to go after a shadowy group, Fulani Nationality Movement (FUNAM), which claimed responsibility for the attack on Ortom.
Yekini said the patrol of the area by the troops would also help check cases of militia herdsmen and other criminals emerging from the forest across River Benue to unleash mayhem on the people, EKO HOT BLOG gathered.
Yekini, who was at the scene of the attack with the Security Adviser to the Benue State Governor, Col. Paul Hemba (rtd), stated that after the attack, his troops immediately moved in to clear the area, and would remain in the area for the next few days.
His words:
“We brought you journalists here so you can see for yourselves the area where the governor was attacked. We were informed on Saturday some hours after the incident took place and I deployed my men who started searching into the Abinsi forest for the gunmen.
“I came on Sunday with more troops to check the situation. We started combing the area and the forest and discovered some camps and destroyed them. We should not be judged by this singular assignment. We have accepted it was a security breach and we will take action.
“We have identified and destroyed some camps in the forest but yet to arrest anyone.”
He said permanent patrol will be set up around the axis to maintain order in the area.
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