The media aide to former Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom, Terver Akase, has rejected allegations that ₦139.8 billion was unaccounted for during the former administration, describing the claims as false and politically motivated.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News, Akase said the allegations were part of an attempt by the administration of Governor Hyacinth Alia to divert attention from questions about its own performance.
“Those are pure lies. Fabrications,” Akase said.
He stated that the Ortom administration operated one of the most transparent systems of governance in the country, noting that the state’s accounts were audited annually and published publicly.
“At the end of the administration of Samuel Ortom, all the accounts for eight years were audited properly, and the state assembly ratified the audited accounts and they were published in national dailies,” he said.
Akase emphasized that there was no missing ₦139.8 billion, insisting that the figures cited by the probe panel did not reflect the financial records handed over by the former governor.
“There is nothing like missing ₦139.8 billion. They are lies,” he stated.
According to him, the allegations are being used as a shield against growing public scrutiny of the current administration’s stewardship.
“This government is only using Ortom as a shield from scrutiny,” Akase said.
He further disclosed that the former governor had already challenged the legitimacy of the probe panel in court, noting that previous panels set up by the Alia administration had been successfully contested.
“The matter is already in court. We are at the Court of Appeal to challenge the legitimacy of the probe panel,” he said.
Akase insisted that Ortom remained willing to cooperate with any lawful and properly constituted investigation, stressing that the former governor had nothing to hide.
“If the probe panel was fairly constituted, he will cooperate because he has nothing to hide,” he said.
He called on the Benue State Government to make the full report of the probe panel public, arguing that citizens should be allowed to compare its findings with the handover documents submitted by the former administration.
“Bring the report publicly, let the people judge,” Akase said.
Akase maintained that the allegations against Ortom lack merit and vowed that the former governor would continue to challenge the probe panel’s findings through the courts while demanding full disclosure of the report to the public.
Ojo Triumph
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