Govs Ortom, Bauchi gov reconcile after media fight over AK-47 for herders

 

Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue state, and Bala Mohammed, his Bauchi counterpart, have reconciled after tackling one another regarding the bearing of arms by herders.

 

The duo embraced on Tuesday after a meeting initiated by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which held in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital.

 

The two governors have been in the news as they disagreed over the use of AK-47 rifles by herders.

 

On February 12, Mohammed said the herders carry AK-47 rifles because they need to protect themselves after the society and the government has “failed” to protect them.

“Because the Fulani man is practising the tradition of pastoralism, he has been exposed to the vagaries of the forest — cattle rustlers who carry guns, kill him and take away his commonwealth, which is the cows,” he had said.

 

“He has no option than to carry AK-47 because the society and the government are not protecting him. What is his fault? It’s the fault of the government and the people. You don’t criminalise all of them, because in every tribe there are criminals.”

 

He had also accused Ortom of fuelling the criminalisation of the Fulani tribe, after which the Benue governor fired back at him, saying such utterances are capable of leading Nigeria to anarchy.

 

The hot exchanges between the duo continued even up till last week when the Benue governor accused Mohammed of being part of a group “terrorising this country”.

 

“Anyone who is not willing to respect the laws of our land should go and meet Bala Mohammed, and there you can carry AK-47, and you’ll not be apprehended,” Ortom had also said.

 

This prompted the PDP to intervene in a bid to reconcile the two governors.