By Terdue Atondu, Makurdi
Former Benue State Governor, Chief Samuel Ioraer Ortom, has continued to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable residents of the state despite leaving office.
The former governor recently intervened in the case of a 36-year-old woman, Miss Rachael Tsehemba Tordue, from Ugondo in Makurdi Local Government Area, who was reportedly bitten by a snake and required urgent medical attention.
According to reports, Tordue had allegedly been rejected by a public hospital over her inability to pay for treatment. She was said to have been bleeding severely when her parents sought help at the former governor’s Judges’ Quarters residence in Makurdi.
Journalists who witnessed the situation reportedly drew the attention of Dr Terver Akase, media consultant to the former governor, who immediately contacted Ortom.
Ortom was said to have directed that the woman be taken to a designated hospital for immediate treatment at his expense.
The intervention, according to those familiar with the development, is consistent with the former governor’s longstanding support for victims of snakebite and other vulnerable members of society.
Before becoming governor in 2015, Ortom had reportedly supported the treatment of snakebite victims in designated hospitals in Makurdi, personally settling medical bills for patients who could not afford treatment.
Upon assuming office on May 29, 2015, he institutionalised the initiative by making free snakebite treatment a responsibility of his administration.
The programme provided free treatment for snakebite victims at St. Theresa’s Hospital, High Level, Makurdi, throughout his eight-year tenure as governor.
The report alleged that the free snakebite treatment programme was discontinued by the administration that succeeded Ortom, leaving affected residents to bear the cost of treatment.
The latest intervention by the former governor, it added, has renewed attention to his continued humanitarian activities after leaving office.
