Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom has blamed the federal government for his inability to pay workers in the state the arrears of their salaries and entitlements properly.
He alleged that the federal government is blocking his moves to obtain loans to offset the outstanding entitlements of the workers because he has refused to join the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He however said he has been paying current salaries.
Speaking on Wednesday during an interview with Arise TV, Gov. Ortom said the federal government is trying to blackmail him, adding that other states that belong to the APC have been given clearance to borrow funds.
He added that the federal government is trying to punish him because of his open stance and confrontation against their policies.
Ortom said, “It is very simple, this is the blackmail of the federal government against me who is speaking the truth against the injustices that have been perpetrated against my state and against other parts of Nigeria.
“Go and ask them what they did in other states, did they not support the states in paying salaries.
“Just two weeks ago, I applied to collect a loan not from the federal government from the bank to offset the arrears of salaries that are inherited over 70 billion naira, the federal government rejected it because I refused to join them in the APC.
“If they had given me that money, I would have cleared it and then nobody would have been talking about issues of arrears of salaries. I have been paying salaries since 2018, when the stakeholders met and said I should pay and what is left is the arrears of salaries.
“And the federal government has refused to support me, they frustrate me. I have tried to borrow money to pay them but they said no.”
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