The 2027 governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Benue State, Chief Michael Aondoakaa, has described as false a political report alleging an arrangement involving him, the former Governor and Leader of the PDP in the state, Chief Samuel Ortom, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 elections.
Aondoakaa stated this in a statement signed by his Media Assistant, James Ian, made available to newsmen in Makurdi on Sunday.
He described the report as a fabricated political narrative designed to mislead the public, insisting that there had been no meeting, negotiation or agreement involving him and the political figures mentioned in the report.
The statement read: “We state categorically and without equivocation that the report is false in its entirety. There was no such meeting, agreement, negotiation or political arrangement involving Chief Aondoakaa and the other leaders as alleged in the publication.”
Aondoakaa described the “so-called International Centre for Transparency Nigeria (ICTN)” credited with the purported press conference as a faceless group with no known credible existence or record of activities commensurate with the grand claims attributed to it.
He said: “The publication provides no documentary evidence of the alleged political deal, no verifiable communiqué and no proof whatsoever connecting Chief Aondoakaa to the imaginary arrangement. Instead, it strings together conjecture and political gossip and attempts to present them as serious political intelligence.
“It is particularly curious that a report built almost entirely on unverified allegations is being circulated as news, even while the publication itself admits that it has not independently verified the claims and has obtained no documentary evidence to support them. That disclaimer does not cure the fundamental problem: an unverified allegation does not become credible merely because it is lengthy.
“The attempt to portray Chief Aondoakaa as a political bridge between Chief Ortom, Senator Akume and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is not only false but devoid of any factual foundation. Those making the allegation have failed to provide a single piece of evidence showing where such an arrangement was discussed, when it was reached or what role Chief Aondoakaa supposedly played in it.
“Chief Aondoakaa is the duly nominated governorship candidate of the PDP in Benue State. His focus remains on building a broad coalition of Benue people across political, ethnic and religious divides and presenting to the electorate a credible alternative anchored on security, economic recovery, agricultural development, job creation and responsible governance.
“It is therefore mischievous for anyone to deliberately misrepresent legitimate political consultations and engagements as evidence of a clandestine presidential arrangement that exists only in the imagination of its authors.
“The allegation becomes even more implausible when considered against the established political position of Chief Samuel Ortom.”
He recalled that ahead of the 2023 elections, Chief Ortom was a prominent member of the G-5 Governors who rejected the presidential candidature of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar on the principle that, after eight consecutive years of a northern presidency, justice demanded that power should rotate to the South.
Chief Ortom paid a significant political price for that conviction but stood his ground because he considered the issue bigger than personal political convenience.
“His position that equity, fairness and national cohesion require respect for equitable power rotation remains well known.
“The attempt to drag the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, into the concoction also does nothing to make the story more credible. Mentioning prominent names cannot transform fiction into fact.
“For the avoidance of doubt, there has been no meeting or arrangement involving Chief Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, Chief Samuel Ortom and Senator George Akume to work for the presidential ambition of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. No such arrangement exists.”
He stated that certain political elements in Benue State who appear increasingly uncertain about their electoral fortunes may find fabricated stories, phantom alliances and imaginary meetings convenient tools of political warfare.
According to Aondoakaa, the frequency with which his name is being dragged into manufactured controversies since his emergence as the PDP governorship candidate is becoming instructive, saying rather than diminish him, “these attacks only betray the anxiety of those who apparently consider his candidature a serious political threat ahead of 2027.”
He challenged those behind the allegation to produce credible evidence of the purported meeting or arrangement and state when and where the alleged meeting took place, who convened it, who attended it and what verifiable evidence they possess to substantiate their claims.
(The Sun)