By Nicholas Dechi

Gov. Samuel Ortom of Benue says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will retain power in the state in the forthcoming elections.

Ortom spoke on Thursday at a political rally in Oju and Obi Local Government Areas of the state.

He said that the party had done all that it needed to do to win the forthcoming general elections with clear margins.

“As we speak, all the 276 councillors in the state are members of PDP while 26 out of 30 members of the state assembly are also members of our party.

“We also have seven House of Representatives members out of 11 and all the three Senators from Benue are members of PDP. Also, the Deputy Governor and the Governor are members of PDP.

“This goes to show that Benue is purely a PDP state and this we will maintain,” Ortom said.

He advised the people to arm themselves with their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), emphasising that the forthcoming elections were different from the past ones.

“The era of snatching ballot boxes is over. Now is the era of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

“With the introduction of BVAS, you must be there at the polling unit to vote because the machine must capture you before you will vote. You should take this election very seriously,” the governor advised.

Meanwhile, the party’s governorship candidate, Mr Titus Uba, appreciated the people for their prayers while he was on medical vacation abroad.

Uba encouraged them to entrust him and his deputy, Mr John Ngbede, with their mandate, promising that they would never be disappointed if they gave them their votes.

He said that they would consolidate on Ortom’s outstanding legacies, stating that the governor  had built a solid foundation for security and they would leverage on it.

“We are blessed with arable land in the state, as such, we will use agriculture to develop the state through modern agricultural techniques,” Uba said.

Also, Ngbede said that they would build on what Ortom had done, pledging that they would not leave the civil servants out in their programmes.

The Senator representing Benue South Senatorial District, Sen. Abba Moro, promised to facilitate construction of the Otukpo-Obi-Oju-Yahe road and its completion before the end of his second term.

“The All Progressives Congress (APC) did not give you hope, as such, you should reject it and vote for all candidates of PDP from the bottom to the top,” Moro said.

Earlier, the Acting state Chairman of PDP, Mr Isaac Mffo, said that a vote for the party means securing the future of their children. (NAN)