Speaking on Tuesday at the Benue Peoples House, Makurdi, Ortom advised the government to take the warning seriously.
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has advised the Nigerian Government not to ignore the alarm raised by his Borno State counterpart, Babagana Zulum, on the recruitment of more fighters by the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Speaking on Tuesday at the Benue Peoples House, Makurdi, Ortom advised the government to take the warning seriously.
The governor said, “I want to lend my voice to what my colleague in Borno State, Prof Babagana Zulum, has cried out against the activities of ISWAP in that part of the country. The Federal Government should not take this alarm from the threats of ISWAP lightly.”
Ortom also urged the Muhammadu Buhari-led government to “take proactive steps to send away terrorists from Nigeria so that we can live in peace. We cannot continue this way. Nigeria deserves more peace than what we have now.”
He stated this while receiving a delegation from the Victim Support Fund, VSF, led by its Chairperson, Toyosi Akerele Ogunsiji.
Ortom also called on public and private organisations to evolve security strategies that will see the return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their normal lives.
VSF was also led by a former Chief of Army Staff, General Theophilus Danjuma (retd.).
Ortom said immediately he came in as governor in 2015, he foresaw the danger of allowing the activities of Fulani militia herdsmen to fester for long without a permanent solution.
He said the result of failing to deal with the problem could currently be seen.
He said: “The strategic support we want now is to enable our people living in IDP camps to return to their ancestral lands. Our people want to go back to their communities so that they can live their normal lives.”
Governor Ortom said he conducted a mass burial for victims of the January 1, 2018 killings by militia herdsmen to draw attention to the security situation in the country, saying leaders at all levels need to speak out against the ills in the country.
Last Thursday, Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum warned that the 13-year Boko Haram crisis in the North-East will be child’s play compared to the terror that will be unleashed by the Islamic State of West African Province if the government failed to wipe out the group early enough.
The governor also once appealed to President Buhari to hire international mercenaries to overcome the growing insurgents.
ISWAP, which he said was more educated, is building up force in Borno State, exploiting its proximity to the Sahel region.
According to him, the growing number of ISWAP fighters in some parts of Borno State is a cause for concern to many Nigerians and allowing the terrorist group to fester will plunge the country into a security crisis.