Governor Samuel Ortom says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will retain power in Benue in the February 25 March 11 elections.

Mr Ortom spoke on Thursday at a political rally in Oju and Obi council areas.

He said the party had done all that it needed to do to win the 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,” Mr Ortom stated.

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

The governor advised the people to arm themselves with their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), stressing that 2023 elections would be different from those of previous years.

“The era of snatching ballot boxes is over. Now is the era of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BIVAS). With the introduction of BIVAS, 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 said.

Meanwhile, the party’s governorship candidate, Titus Uba, urged Benue residents to vote for him and his running mate, John Ngbede.

He said they would consolidate on Mr Ortom’s legacies.

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

(NAN)