Samuel Ortom, the recently-departed governor of Benue State, Northcentral Nigeria is being held by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Ortom arrived at the agency’s Makurdi zonal office, which is situated on Alor Gordon Street in the state capital, at precisely 10:08am.
Abraham Kwanhgu, the principal special assistant on special duties, and Terver Akase, the previous governor’s media aide, were seen with him. As of 11:40am when this report was sent, he was still inside the building.
According to reports, Ortom gave Father Hyacinth Alia’s government a debt profile of N187.7 billion.
At a brief ceremony held at the former banquet hall of Government House in Makurdi, Ortom informed Alia that the three volumes of handover papers contained a summary of his eight years in office.
The governor stated that as of April 2023, the state’s entire income during his eight years in office was N734.9 billion, but its total debt, which includes unpaid salaries, pension arrears, loans, and bonds among other things, was N187.7 billion.
He also informed his successor of a N97.716 billion debt swap/reduction agreement between the state and the federal government.
According to Ortom, the negotiated debt swap would be reduced to N45.2 billion with a projected inflow of N48 billion, after discount, lowering the state’s overall debt profile.
He further stated that his government had already received permission for an N41 billion loan and a N20 billion Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) facility, advising the Alia administration to push for the release of the funds as soon as they took office.
