“Ortom never came to acquire land in our community – Mbawa Youths
Mbawa Youths under the auspices of Indigenous Youth Group of Mbawa (IYGM) has denied the allegation that the State Governor, Mr Samuel Ortom was at Tyo-Mu community for land grabbing during his purported assassination attempt.
It had been rumored in Benue that the Governor had traveled to the community for the purpose of grabbing land when armed gunmen attempted to assassinate the Governor last Saturday.
In a swift reaction to the claim, the Youth Group in Makurdi and Guma Local Government Areas of the State described the allegation as false, saying the “Tyo-Mu Concerned Youth Vanguard,” acclaimed authors of the statement is faceless and does not exist in the area.
In a statement that was signed by Ephraim Ikyumbur, Christopher Nyityo, Philip Bezu and Joseph Gbajime Kaduna, IYGM stated that the Governor did not go to their community to acquire land.
“Mbawa Youths wish to state categorically that the Governor did not go to Mbawa Community to grab land. In any case, the Governor like any other person, has right to buy land anywhere in the world including Mbawa ancestral land.
“Mbawa Youths wishes to also state that the so called “Tyo-mu Concerned Youths Vanguard” is not known to Mbawa people inhabiting their ancestral lands as from km 12 to km 23 on Gboko Road in Makurdi Local Government Area.
“We wish to further state that in these times where there are insecurity challenges in the country, mischievous people should not be making incendiary statements that will add tension to the already bad situation.
“What we need from every right thinking Benue citizen is sympathy and prayers for the Governor and every other Benue citizen no matter which political party he/ she belongs,” the youth group stated.
It however called on security agencies and other relevant authorities, particularly the Federal Government team deployed to the state to investigate the incident and fish out the perpetrators of the dastardly act on the Governor and his entourage and bring the culprits to justice.
“Ortom never came to acquire land in our community – Mbawa Youths
