Benue governor’s Chief Press Secretary, (CPS) Terver Akase has urged Titus Zam, former Special Adviser on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in the state to stop blackmailing his principal over his failed attempt to clinch the seat of Chairman of State Universal Basic Education Authority, SUBEB.
In a statement issued in Makurdi on Thursday, said Zam, a close ally of Senator George Akume, Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, had sent emissaries to Governor Ortom, pledging his loyalty and promising to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, if he was appointed, but Governor Ortom declined to consider him.
Ortom’s reasons for turning down Zam’s ambition, according to Akase, was as a result of his greed and incompetence.
His words: “As soon as you got wind of the resignation of Reverend Emmanuel Aper as Chairman Benue State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB, you sent an emissary to the Governor asking him to make you the next SUBEB Chairman. You pledged to switch your loyalty to the Governor and even promised to immediately decamp to PDP if you were appointed to head SUBEB. The Governor turned down your request and gave you reasons some of which bordered on incompetence and greed-avarice.
“Zam, this is the source of your current venom against the Governor. But you don’t have to go berserk and resort to cheap blackmail simply because Governor Ortom has declined your quest to head SUBEB.
“If there is anyone who should know your character deeply, that person is Governor Ortom. As Adviser to the Governor on Local Government Chieftaincy Affairs, you always dozed off during State Executive Council meetings and you did not at any time raise a memo to Council on how best to run the third tier of government.
“As a sleeping aide, you never advised the Governor even once. What positive impact did you have on governance of the state while you served as Adviser? What value did you add to even your people of Tyoshin when you were in government?
“You lost the last election in your ward. The Governor defeated your party right before your people. I expect you to be sober and reflect on these issues rather than come out every other day to run commentaries on governance. It is really shocking that you now pontificate on good governance, something you hitherto didn’t see as important.
“I wonder if Hon. Charles Torbundeh and Dr. Cletus Tyokyaa have whispered to you that they are in need of a job. What did you do for them in your capacity as Adviser?
“You chose to play the ridiculous parochial card that Govenor Ortom only favours Nongov people in appointments. I wonder if you were also from Nongov when the Governor made you Adviser.
“You have opted to turn a blind eye to the fact that Tyoshin where you hail from has two Commissioners, an Adviser and many other appointments when Nongov people do not have even one Commissioner.
“Let me point it out to you that every part of Benue State is represented in the present administration. Yours was therefore a poor script aimed at veiling your real motive for attacking the Governor.
“As a self-proclaimed chieftain of APC, is it not easier for you to advise the Federal Government controlled by your party to give Benue people appointments? That’s a good place to start.
“Not long ago, you, Zam, called on the Governor to appoint more MINDA sons and daughters into government positions. You passionately and selfishly urged the Governor to remember that after his tenure, the governorship of Benue Benue won’t return to MINDA for a long time, hence the ‘urgent need’ to bring more sons and daughters of the area into government now. At that time, you forgot the Benue State character. What selfishness!
“I expect you to commend Governor Ortom for always insisting that competence and credibility prevails among his appointees and does not hesitate to allow those who fail to live up to the raised bar of good performance to resign.”
