Surrender Illegal Arms And Get Compensation – Ortom

Benue State Government has pledged to compensate those who voluntarily surrender illegal arms in their possession with money, skills acquisition training and integration into its empowerment program.

Governor Samuel Ortom announced this yesterday at the old Banquet Hall of Benue People’s House Makurdi during a meeting with heads of various security agencies in the state and the Civilian Joint Task Force on peace and reconciliation.

He listed categories of the compensation as one hundred thousand naira for automatic rifles, fifty thousand for automatic pistols, twenty thousand for locally made pistols and ten thousand for locally made ones.

He said a testimonial of good character and entrepreneurship training would be given to such a person who will be integrated into the empowerment schemes mapped up by the administration.

The Governor who also promised to commence immediate payment of allowances owed members of the Task Force and to subsequently provide them with motorcycles, boots and helmets.

According to him the decisions was borne out of the need to motivate the various critical stakeholders in the security sector to sit up and perform their duties creditably, pointing out that with a secured atmosphere, the dream of his administration to woo investors into the state to boost its economy would be realized.

He promised members of the task force that he would reward every major gain recorded against criminals in the state and said he gave those who possessed illegal arms up to the end of August to surrender them or they would be arrested.

Governor Ortom condemned the renewed spate of kidnappings, killings and cultism in the state and pledged that his administration was determined to curb such activities.

He stressed commitment his commitment to sustain initiatives that would guarantee peace and the security of lives and property and commended the various security agencies for their efforts at assisting in that direction.

Earlier, Chairman of the Civilian Joint Task Force on Peace and Reconciliation, Alhaji Aliyu Tershaku had assured the Governor of readiness to continue to live up to expectation in performing their responsibility.