Rose Ejembi Makurdi Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has tasked the National Assembly to prevail on the President Muhammadu Buhari led federal government to have a rethink about the proposed constructing of a rail line from Kano to Niger Republic at the cost of 1.9billion dollars. Governor Ortom stated this during the inauguration and groundbreaking ceremony of Benue State geographic information service in Makurdi yesterday, wondering what economic benefits the project have for Nigeria.
He explained that Benue as well as other states of the federation need rail lines too and that the federal government should rather focus on providing such infrastructure to Nigerians.
"What is the economic benefit of a rail line from Nigeria to Niger? Why do we have to take $1.9billion to make a rail line to Niger? Ortom enjoined the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Water Resources, Hon. Sada Soli, to work with his other colleagues and advise the federal government against taking money to execute railway project to Niger Republic. Speaking to newsmen on the dumped Water Resources Bill Governor Ortom, commended the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, for heeding the calls of Nigerians to throw out the bill. "Some of the policies of the federal government has made some of us to be suspicious. We have seen cattle colony, Ruga and open grazing camouflage coming into play. So, when you bring a bill that was thrown out by the eight Assembly, we must question it. "I thank God for the House of Representatives members and the Speaker of the House who understand the yearnings of our people. The water bill as proposed has no place whatsoever in Nigeria as at today. It is a plan to reintroduce Ruga and I keep saying it. "You cannot bring a law with a hidden agenda and you think you can impose it on the people, we will certainly resist it. And we will tell our members in the House to stand with the Speaker to ensure that that kind of bill does not come forth. "Now that they have referred it to go through the normal channel, if they want they can reintroduce it, we will go to the public hearing. "The question everyone is asking is; if they are saying there is nothing in the bill, why are they then amending the existing law that has been there for a long time? “I will continue to stand for the truth no matter the aspersion anyone want to cast on me. "Moreover, the entire South-South, South-East, South-West and the Middle-Belt as a whole came out to resist that bill warning that they would not accept it. So I congratulate the House of Representatives for what they have done," the Governor stated. Ortom earlier paid a condolence visit on elder statesman, Wantereph Paul who recently lost his wife