Benue State Governor, Chief Samuel Ortom alongside leaders of the various socio-cultural groups have backed calls by some members of the National Assembly for the impeachment of President Muhammadu Buhari over worsening state of insecurity in the country.

The Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) caucus in the Senate led by the Senate Minority Leader, Philip Aduda on Tuesday staged a walk out on plenary to protest the failure of President Muhammadu Buhari to end insecurity in Nigeria. While Ortom spoke in Makurdi, Benue State capital, leaders of the socio-cultural groups spoke in separate chats with Saturday Telegraph on Friday.

They were unanimous in their views that President Buhari urgently needs to tame the scourge of insecurity or members of the two chambers of the National Assembly would act to save the country from further slide into anarchy. Apart from Ortom, those who spoke with our correspondents include the leader of the pan-Yoruba Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the Director of Publicity and Advocacy of the Northern Elders Forum,Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, as well as former President of an Igbo political pressure group, Aka Ikenga, Chief Goddy Nwazurike. Ortom described the move as patriotic when he received a delegation of some members of the National Assembly led by the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Aduda, who came to brief him in his office .

While scoring the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) low in performance, the governor described the decision of both the Senate and the House of Representatives to impeach the President as “patriotic” and, particularly commended some members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) who have opted to do the ‘right thing’. He said President Buhari has performed far below the expectations of Nigerians in solving both the security and economic challenges of the country and so needs to give way for a more competent person. The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Aduda, had earlier told the governor Ortom that as a leader of the PDP in the North Central, the delegation considered it appropriate to brief him on the decision of the National Assembly to impeach the President. Aduda said although the impeachment move was initiated by the Senate, the House of Representatives as well as a good number of the APC members have also joined.

Commenting, Adebanjo said that the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government has no solution to the myriad of problems confronting the country, saying the party has overstayed its welcome in power. According to him, “Some of the people in government are aiding and abetting these terrorists. Buhari should go now. A security expert said on television that they had given the president names of some of the people behind Boko Haram since 2017, but that he did nothing about it.” The Afenifere leader called for a government of national unity before the scheduled general elections based on the level of insecurity in the country. He said, “Are we waiting till they wipe out the whole North before we act as a people?

If you believe that there should be another general election, then go ahead. The people deserve the kind of government they get. On his part, Baba- Ahmed urged all stakeholders in Nigeria to hold President Buhari liable for the worsening insecurity in Nigeria, adding that it has become somewhat frightening to think that the current scourge would continue till May next year. While lauding members of the National Assembly for the ultimatum given to the President to act, Baba- Ahmed also called on all well-meaning Nigerians to “speak up”. “Nigeria is operating a democratic constitutional government.

The president has until May 29th to leave the leadership of this country but going by what is on the ground it might be useful to remind the presi-dent that until the last day he is in power he has the responsibility to continue to secure Nigeria. “It’s a frightening prospect that we stay for another nine months of this President. We are encouraged by the indignation and anger of Nigerians, particularly from the National Assembly that the President must do what is right or leave. We hope that we don’t have to live under worse conditions before President Buhari leaves.

“Nigerians need to speak up. We encourage Nigerians to demand the right for good governance. It is not enough to say that he is the president and that he has the right to stay until May 29 doing nothing but just allowing us to continue to die.” Baba-Ahmed said. Uwazurike who harped on the time and practicality of the call (for Buhari’s impeachment) said the move might be difficult to carry out owing to the political coloration it is currently generating. “I am not a politician. This is a very political question regarding whether he leaves or not is his decision to make. Now if Nigerians want him to go, the legislators must buy into it. If he is to stay, it means that they are ready to guide him. If he is not going to obey them, then they know what to do. My answer is very simple and straight. “It’s a highly politicized question. Asking him to go by Ndigbo or anybody may not be realistic. The only thing we can say is that if he cannot do the work he is elected to do, then he should leave. He has a vice president who should take over and if the vice cannot do the job then he too should leave. The legislators are there to do the needful.”(Saturday Telegraph)

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