This is a brilliantly articulated piece I must say. Read patiently and let your conscience interpret:
POSERS FOR BUHARI AS HE VISITS BENUE:
His Excellency, your visit to Benue for the third time in four years is received with mixed feelings. It means different things to different people for any of the times you came visiting. The first was in 2015 when you came to seek our votes.The second is in 2018 when our people were murdered in cold blood by bloody thirsty Fulani herdsmen militia. Your IG, Minister of interior and defence defended the killings. Your visit at the time was not just a mockery and desecration of our traditional values but an insult on our sensibilities. This is because you were literally compelled by public opinion to visit the state after the geneocide and when you did, you couldn't even respect our revered Tor Tiv with a visit to his palace but compelled our paramount majesty to come and recieve you in Makurdi. What a paradox, for the berieved to move from his abode to come elsewhere to be condoled instead of the other way round. Who does that in traditional sense, except a person that holds your custom in contempt. Your third visit now is again about seeking for our votes. It's on record that you have in the past three years visited other states commissioning projects except Benue. Your three visits can better be coined as evil Trinity because, it's about I, ME and MYSELF (IMM). The visits are individualistic, self-centred and opportunistic. This impression will indelibly remain the conclusion of the Benue community except you answer the following 20 questions satisfactorily, namely;
1.The Benue people defied an incumbent PDP to vote for you in 2015 when they had a sitting Governor, DG Nafdac, MD Nexim Bank, Executive secretary Human rights Commission, Federal Permanent Secretary, two serving Ministers, etc. You have stripped them of these benefits without replacement. Why do you think they should trust you with their votes?
- The North Central has been ravaged by Fulani herdsmen militia just as Boko Haram has done for the North East. The North East has received your attention through money spinning interventions namely;
a. North East Development Commission.
b. Presidential Committee for the rehabilitation of the North East
C. Bama initiative
D.CBN food shortage support fund for North East.
E. Anchor Borrowers funds deliberately skewed to favour Northeast.
F. Nigeria Army University, Buratai, Borno state. Why is the North Central deliberately ignored, without similar interventions?. - The MD of NNPC was in Benue on the 10/11/ 2017 and promised to commence the exploitation of our hydrocarbon deposits located in Logo,Guma, Makurdi,Gwer West, Gwer East, Agatu and commence a biofuels(ethanol) in Agasha,but up till now nothing has been done. On the other hand, on the 2/02/19, you and GMD of NNPC comissioned Kolmani river oil drilling in Bauchi on your campaign . Why are the Benue hydrocarbon deposits not being exploited as promised?.
- The killings in Benue were attributed to Alh. Aliyu Tashaku who was purportedly recruited by Ortom to kill Benue people. Why was he arrested by Police but was released without being charged ?.
- The said Alh. Tashaku is not only released but alledgedly given security escorts, resides in Nasarawa state and is recruiting a mercenary militia for Miyeti Allah to launch an onslaught against Benue farmers during and after election. Are you not aware?.
- The refugees in Benue have been living in deplorable conditions under the exposure of the elements. It took the intervention of Doctors without Borders to change their tents to nylon covers. What has the federal government done to ameliorate their condition on a sustainable basis apart from the token material support from NEMA?.
- When will the 2billion intervention for the rehabilitation of displaced persons promised by the Vice President when he visited Benue state as Acting President, be released?.
- When will their houses be reconstructed and farmlands secured for their return back home?.
9.Benue is generally known as food basket with a federal minister of Agriculture. What deliberate efforts has the Federal government done to empower the Benue farmers in the state to industrialise?. - Benue as an agrerian state has been having perennial occupational conflicts of interest with Fulani herdsmen. It's trite that wandering herds and green crops cannot coexist without encroachment. What modern alternative does the Buhari regime have apart from the outdated rhetorics of restoring grazing routes?.
- Integrity and shared interests are not mutually exclusive. You may have integrity but not shared interest per time. Where intergrity is at conflict with my existential interest, of what use is the integrity to me?.
- The Benue people and other Nigerians trusted you and voted overwhelmingly for you. However, your nepotic concentration of juicy appointments in the far north and Muslim brotherhood cast aspersions on your statesmanship credentials. If you can be so daring in a reelection year, what's the guarantee that other tribes will matter in your second term, when you have no personal stakes?.
- We are equally worried that a contract for the dredging of River Benue and a river port in MAKURDI was given by the past administration but has been abandoned. You hurriedly completed the one in Niger state, abandoning Benue, the gate way to the north. Was it a crime to vote you in 2015?. What have we done to deserve being wickedly ignore?.
- You flagged off the dualisation of Abuja,Makurdi and 9th mile road in Keffi last year. We can only see construction sites located in Nasarawa state only. This implies the construction will only cover that area, since there is no such sites anywhere on the Benue stretch. With the length of the road, it's not possible for one contractor to deliver the road in four years. Do we conclude that, in the next four years, you are only concerned with Nasarawa stretch, where Fulani herdsmen are allowed to graze indiscriminately?.
- Your APC foot soldiers are boasting of Federal might, where they claim all security agencies have been instructed to manipulate elections results in their favour. To them, the results are ready and the security agencies will give them cover on election Day to stamp the results. Could this have been the same method adopted to return you elected in 2015?.
- Your Campaign in Kano on the 31/01/19 where foreign Niger Republic Governors were on handle to lend support to your campaign was quite disturbing. It's curious that you just recently, warned the USA, EU, France etc not to interfere in Nigeria's internal politics. By this example, are you suggesting that we, as a border state, are permitted to invite our blood brothers from Cameroon to attend our rallies?.
- The principle of business requires that industries are established on the basis of comparative advantage. Most indigenous communities have areas of their comparative advantages. Benue is known for agrerian crop production. Why must government compel every state to give up scarce farmlands as cow ranch, even when they don't enjoy a comparative advantage?.
- The Israelis have a water technology that turns deserts into green lands. The Kenyan government has effectively deployed the technology and are turning their deserts into green areas for crop Production. This effectively neutralizes the climate change argument that is used to defend Fulani herdsmen trepass on farmlands. The monies purportedly voted for livestock production is enough to execute this programme. If there are no sinister motives, why can't the government buy and deploy the technology and establish cow colonies in the empty arid lands in the far north?.
- The high debts that this government has incurred in three years is far more than the debts in the 16 years of the PDP. Yet all we have to show for it is completion of projects that were 70-80 % done already like railways, power stations etc. What projects were either completed or initiated in Benue in the last three years that you will commission as you are doing in other states?.
- The 2019 budget estimated at about 8trillion is in deficit. Your government is reported to have made huge gains in revenues in FIRS, NIMASA,CUSTOMS,TSA,ABACHA LOOT RECOVERY,OTHER LOOTERS,etc amounting to over 13 trillions. Why are you still borrowing to fund projects when whatt you claim to have collected in revenue is well above deficit ?.
We can predict the future by creating it, through the type of economic and political choices we make. Don't you think the future of our children is mortgaged to China and your SUKKUK business interests?.
These questions are meant to jostle and interrogate your performance in the last three years and how it affects Benue in particular and Nigeria at large. Thanks, your Excellency.