The recent outburst by Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State that he would not support a Fulani man for the presidency was uncalled for coming from someone of his standing.
It is indeed problematic in a multifaceted country like Nigeria, where we are daily struggling to bring peaceful coexistence among the various ethnic groups in the country.
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It is sad for any politician to play ethnic politics at this crucial time in the nation’s history.
Ortom can continue his fight against Atiku Abubakar, the PDP and Iyorchia Ayu but not play politics with ethnicity. How could Samuel Ortom, as an elder statesman, be accusing Fulani men for the escalation of violence in Nigeria?
Having grudges against the PDP presidential candidate or the party chairman does not give Ortom the excuse to breach the law by accusing the Fulani of being the masterminds of the nation’s unrest, especially in his home state of Benue. What he did was uncalled for.
Not just in Benue State, according to the 1999 Constitution, a Fulani man has the right to live in any part of the country.
It is time for all politicians to realise that mixing politics with ethnicity when trying to achieve their goals is not in the best interest of our country.
Betty Benjamin Oluchi, Department of Mass Communication University of Maiduguri
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