‘No Fulani Security Outfit in Benue’

George Okoh in Makurdi

The Deputy Governor of Benue State, Mr. Sam Ode, has refuted media reports that claimed that the Benue State Government has approved the launch of a Fulani security outfit in the state.

Ode, who stated this at a press briefing in his office in Makurdi during the weekend, also said that he did not authorise anybody to represent him or Benue State Government at any launch of a security outfit in the state.

He said: “I did not authorise anyone to represent me or the state government at any Fulani security summit or commissioning of security outfit.”

Ode called on the good people of Benue State to ignore the plot by mischievous elements to drag the administration of the Governor of Benue State, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, into a non-existent controversy, stressing that security of lives and property of the citizens is a major focus of the Alia’s administration.

It would be recalled that the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) raised the alarm over the inauguration of a private security outfit in Makurdi, the capital of Benue State that had the approval of the state government.

The PDP, in a statement issued by its State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Bemgba Iortyom, had alleged that Ode has commissioned the national headquarters of the security outfit through his Chief Protocol Officer, Mr. Gabriel Igoche.

The PDP also expressed concern that the proprietor of the security outfit, Mr. Aliyu Teshaku, is allegedly a profiled member of the dreaded Boko Haram terrorist organisation that has links with other armed banditry groups in the country.

Iortyom said: “The security outfit, which is known to have among its top commanders, men of Fulani ethnic stock and whose founder, Aliyu Tershaku is (allegedly) profiled by security agencies as a suspected Boko Haram terrorist, has already swung into operation with its operatives sited over the past couple of days in parts of Makurdi, the Benue State’s capital city.”

However, the deputy governor, has denied any romance between the Alia’s administration and the alleged security organisation.