ORTOM RESTATES SUPPORT TO DEMOCRATIC STRUCTURES
We read a story in Saturday Independent of September 1, 2018 in which the reporter alleged that Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom has blocked the sale of forms to governorship aspirants of the Social Democratic Party, SDP.
We wonder where the newspaper got the false and misleading information. The report is totally baseless.
Governor Ortom is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and not SDP. He could therefore not have stopped anyone in SDP from purchasing nomination forms.
Even in PDP, the Governor has not prevented other aspirants from buying nomination forms, so why would he interfere with the process of another political party?
The said newspaper report is apparently sponsored, reckless and highly unprofessional.
The reporter failed to quote any source of his information despite stating that “Saturday Independent reliably learnt that as a political strategy, the governor may have blocked the sale of nomination forms to other aspirants in the SDP”. Such a sweeping statement ought to have been supported with evidence.
We also found ridiculous, the claim in the report that Governor Ortom has secretly purchased his PDP nomination form. Why would a sitting Governor go to pick his party’s nomination form in secret? Political parties do not sell their nomination forms in secret.
Journalists should be nation builders. Responsible journalism contributes to the growth of society; but when reporters become manufacturers of fake news to mislead the people, the society has cause to worry.
We urge members of the public to disregard the said report in its entirety.
Terver Akase
Chief Press Secretary
September 1, 2018.
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