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Ortom: I worked against PDP in 2023 for abandoning equity, fairness
Samuel Ortom, former governor of Benue state, says he worked against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election because it abandoned justice and fairness.
The opposition party has been battling internal divisions that began in the lead-up to the 2023 general election and ultimately contributed to its defeat at the polls.
A major point of contention was the outcome of the party’s presidential primary in May 2022, which some party members alleged was manipulated by Iyorchia Ayu, the former national chairman, to favour Atiku Abubakar, a northerner.
At the time, some party members were advocating for a southern presidential candidate, arguing that power should rotate away from the north, as former President Muhammadu Buhari, a northerner, was completing his second term.
A group of five governors known as the Integrity Group (G5 governors), led by Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers at the time, refused to back Abubakar’s candidacy during the election.
Wike, who contested in the presidential primary, lost to Abubakar.
Speaking in an interview on Arise Television on Thursday, Ortom claimed that the PDP failed to uphold fairness and equity by not unanimously backing a southern candidate.
“We had thought the PDP would uphold equity, fairness, and justice. But unfortunately, they did not,” he said.
“I couldn’t understand how, after eight years of a northern presidency, the party would support another northern candidate.”
Ortom, who was a member of the then-G5 governors, withdrew support for Abubakar in the election and backed Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP).
“For us in the G5, it was about equity. We believed the presidency should go to the south. That was why I worked against the PDP in 2023,” Ortom said.
“Even if I lost my senatorial election after serving eight years as governor, it didn’t matter. I wanted it to be known that there are still people who believe in justice, equity, and fairness.
“Politics is selfish. When your interests are not protected, you look elsewhere. Yes, Wike is my friend, we worked together, and he remains my friend.”
Ortom said that although he chaired the PDP panel, which recommended throwing the presidential ticket open instead of zoning it to the south, he could not override the collective will of the committee members.
Ortom added that the final decision rested with the party’s national executive committee (NEC).
“I was chairman of the zoning committee, but I couldn’t override what the majority wanted. I simply reported the committee’s position to the NEC, and they chose to throw the ticket open,” he said.
Ortom said he is committed to supporting a southern presidential candidate in 2027 to ensure the zone completes eight years.
He said that if the PDP fields a presidential candidate from the north, he may back a candidate from another party.
He said Abubakar and the PDP leadership didn’t provide an inclusive environment for members who supported Wike.
“That’s why we went different ways. Wike supported Tinubu, and I supported Peter Obi. Others chose their own path. That’s how we ended up with the current government,” Ortom said.
A TikTok user, Khadija Muhammad Yar Lele, has been remanded in a correctional facility in Kano over alleged defamation and insulting a politician.
Khadija was arraigned before the Upper Sharia Court sitting at Post Office Kano municipal presided over by Justice Garba Malafa, where the police filed a charge against her over the alleged offences.
When the charges were read to her, the defendant pleaded not guilty of all charges.
The prosecutor, Barrister Awaisu Sani Lawan, urged the court to adjourn the case to enable the prosecution to present its witnesses at next sitting.
After hearing both sides, the court ordered that Khadija be remanded in a correctional facility and adjourned the case until October 14, 2026, for her re-arraignment and continuation of proceedings.
The defendant was earlier accused of posting a video on her TikTok account in which she allegedly made insulting remarks against the complainant, identified as MD Hassan, a politician in Nassarawa Local Government Area of Kano State.
In the video, she was allegedly heard referring to the politician as a “prostitute’s son”, a statement that led to her arraignment before the court.
American rapper Nicki Minaj has followed Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate Peter Obi on X, shortly after reposting his statement on the reported killings and abductions in Niger State.
A check on the platform showed that Obi is the only 2027 presidential candidate followed by the rapper on X.
Minaj’s action came shortly after she reposted a statement shared by Obi on Wednesday, in which the former Anambra State governor condemned the reported killings and abductions in Niger State, describing the situation as a systematic devaluation of human life.
Obi also called for intelligence-led action against the criminal networks responsible for attacks and abductions across the country, stressing the need for stronger measures to protect communities and citizens.
The rapper’s repost attracted reactions from Nigerians and other social media users in Nigeria and the diaspora, with some praising her for amplifying concerns about the country’s security situation and calls for justice and protection for affected communities.
Minaj’s decision to follow Obi has also drawn attention online, particularly because of the reported list of political figures she follows on the platform.
The development comes amid growing attention to the 2027 presidential race and renewed discussions on insecurity in Nigeria.
The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses has announced that members can now decide whether to accept or donate the four main components of blood based on their personal conscience.
The organisation made this known in a statement issued by its World Headquarters in Warwick, New York and made available on its website on Friday.
According to the statement, “the decision to accept red cells, white cells, plasma or platelets from another person’s blood is a matter of personal conscience.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses announce adjustment to blood transfusion policy
It added that “each Witness must decide whether or not to donate blood for the clearly expressed purpose of providing components or fractions for use by another person.”
However, the organisation said its position on whole-blood transfusion had not changed.
“The long-standing refusal of whole-blood transfusions on religious grounds, a core teaching based on the command to ‘abstain from blood’ (Acts 15:20), is unchanged,” the statement said.
International spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses at the organisation’s World Headquarters, Paul Gillies, said, “Blood remains sacred to Jehovah’s Witnesses, who continue to regard life and blood as precious gifts from God.
“We recognise that medical decisions involving blood components are a matter of conscience between each Witness and their God, Jehovah.”
The organisation said the adjustment “follows earlier updates regarding blood fractions and the use of one’s own blood during medical procedures.”
It added, “Since the Bible does not comment on such decisions, they are a matter of individual conscience. That same reasoning has now been extended to the four main components of blood.”
On medical care, the statement said, “Jehovah’s Witnesses love life and want the best available medical care. They do not practise faith healing, and they seek out doctors who can provide effective treatment in accord with their wishes, values and beliefs.”
Gillies said local congregations would not interfere in members’ personal decisions.
“Congregations do not involve themselves in personal decisions that rest with the individual conscience. We will continue to respect and support the personal decisions of our fellow believers.
“We are grateful, too, for the many skilled and compassionate physicians who provide quality medical care that respects our personal wishes regarding blood,” he said.
The organisation said Jehovah’s Witnesses number “over nine million worldwide, in congregations across more than 200 lands.”
Recall that the religious group had clarified its position on the use of a member’s own blood during surgery and other medical procedures.
The clarification allowed individual Witnesses to decide whether their blood could be removed, stored and returned to them during medical treatment, while the organisation maintained its position against receiving blood from another person.
Punch
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