Water Resources Bill: Group Accuses Ortom Of Plot To Monopolise Cattle Business

A group, the Middle Belt Conscience Guard (MBCG), on Tuesday, accused Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, of allegedly plotting to monopolise cattle rearing business in the North-Central.

President of MBCG, Prince Enero, made the accusation in a statement in Abuja against the backdrop of Ortom’s stance against the National Water Resources Bill. 

Enero also advised the governor against what he termed his “inflammatory rhetoric” against the controversial bill. 

The bill, initiated in 2019, among other things, seeks to establish a regulatory framework for the water resources sector, provide for equitable and sustainable development/management of Nigeria’s surface water, groundwater resources and related matters.

Ortom had last week called on the National Assembly to reject the bill in the interest of the country.

According to him, the provisions of the bill are at variance with the Land Use Act, and that the bill is a “disguised land-grabbing legislation designed to grant pastoralists unhindered access to river basins, adjacent marine and coastal environments across the country.”

Also, the governor on Monday, threatened to drag the Federal Government and the National Assembly to court over any continued deliberation on the bill.

But, Enero observed that Ortom’s ancestry and connection to the Fulani, makes cattle rearing a part of him. 

The president of the group further alleged that the governor perceived the Fulani as a threat to his seemingly booming cattle business which he hopes to expand further when he leaves office in 2023. 

He maintained that the governor’s criticism without reaching out to the National Assembly was a strategic way of priming Benue people to embrace violence if the legislation was eventually passed. 

He said: “We are also aware that Benue State has 14 representatives in the National Assembly – three in the Senate and 11 in the House of Representatives. If he comes down from his high horse and coordinate these representatives to lobby their colleagues in the National Assembly, Benue state alone can singularly shut down the National Water Resources Bill.

“But because Ortom scarcely has any track record of cordial relations with anyone, he is not able to wield such influence hence the resort to inflammatory rhetoric without a thought for how this affects the long-term peace and stability of the Middle Belt, including Benue state.

“Even if the national assembly were to go ahead and pass the bill against all protestations, there is room to lobby and mount pressure against Mr. President assenting to the document; which must be done responsibly and not the current loutish approach that we have so far seen from the Benue state governor. It is an exercise that is guaranteed to succeed if Ortom can redeem himself on time to appear responsible before his fellow governors to garner support for such enterprise.”

The group’s president added: “In the most extreme case, the judiciary is there as the last hope of all citizens and Ortom is welcome to approach the law courts to stop the bill if the amendment passed through and not resort to whipping up sentiment and inciting people to violence.  

“We are doubtful that Ortom will avail himself of these legitimate channels of dissention because he is resolved on setting everyone up against peace in the middle belt. Groups that he is sponsoring are coming out to echo his prelude to violence, which makes it necessary for us to tell him to stop sponsoring mushroom groups to attack the federal government as led by President Muhammadu Buhari. The president is not contesting any election with Ortom, all Buhari wants is to create an enabling environment for peace, unity, development and progress and equality for all citizens”. 

The group, therefore, challenged the governor to prove that his “belligerent stance is not because he sees himself as being in competition with pastoralist Fulani in cattle rearing”. 

It added that Ortom is “typical Tiv – Fulani because his grand grandfather was Fulani and has large herd of cattle on his farm, hence wants to monopolise the cattle business when he leaves Government House Makurdi in Year 2023”. 

Reacting to the allegations by the group, Benue state Commissioner for Information, Ngunan Addingi, in an interview with THE WHISTLER, described all the claims by the group as “funny and laughable.”

Addingi said the group was paid to make o unfounded allegations, adding that the governor had no such plans.