Benue People, Meet Your 2015 Governorship Candidates.

Tarzoor & ortomAs Benue people prepare for the April 11 2015 governorship election,Fabmimi.com, serves you the profiles of the governorship candidates of the two dominant parties, the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party.
Benue  State,Please click to read their profiles now.

Chief Dr. Samuel Ioraer Ortom, industrialist, farmer, businessman, politician, philanthropist, administrator and employer, was born on 23rd April, 1961 in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State. 


He was enrolled into the St. John’s Primary School, Gboko in 1970 but moved to St. Catherine’s Primary School, Makurdi in 1974 where he completed primary education in 1976. Chief Dr. Ortom was admitted into Idah Secondary Commercial College, Idah in Kogi State in 1976. 

He did two years in the school before his father’s retirement in 1979 brought an abrupt end to his dream of completing formal secondary school education on account of inability to pay school fees. Shortly before this happened, he had given his life to Jesus Christ. However, instead of idling away at home to mourn his fate he girded his loins and got into the Gboko motor park as a tout. It was in the park that a Good Samaritan taught him how to drive because of his honesty and dedication to duty. 

Another helped him to obtain a drivers’ license and soon after he became employed as a professional driver. On recommendation he became the driver and confidant of a prominent Gboko-based Christian leader and politician, Pa Samu Ihugh. One day after close of work he hung around voluntarily in the house of his boss waiting, in his usual manner, whether his services might still be required. 

That wait opened a chapter in his life that has contributed greatly in raising him up to his present status. While sitting on a bench outside the house the wind blew a piece of paper which was an advert for enrolment into the National School of Salesmanship, Manchester, towards him. 

He picked it, read, and decided to enroll for it by correspondence, thus launching himself into the world of acquiring knowledge and certificates by correspondence. In this manner he obtained the General Certificate of Education, GCE as well as Diploma in Salesmanship. Chief Dr. Ortom enrolled at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and obtained both the Interim Joint Matriculation Board Certificate, in 1995 and Diploma in Journalism in 1998. 


He also attended the Benue State University where he obtained the Advanced Diploma in Personnel Management in 2001 as well as Master of Public Administration in 2004. Dr. Ortom crowned his educational pursuit with a Doctor of Philosophy, Ph.D, from the Commonwealth University, Belize, through distant learning. 

His working experience spans the private, public as well as political spheres. He rose from Salesman to Sales Manager with Gyado Foods Co. Limited, before his election as Executive Chairman of Guma Local Government Area from 1991 to 1993 on the platform of the Social Democratic Party, SDP. 

In the political sphere he has been State Publicity Secretary of the National Centre Party of Nigeria, NCPN; State Treasurer of the All Peoples Party, APP; and State Secretary as well as Deputy Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, all in Benue State. Dr. Ortom was also Director of Operations of the PDP gubernatorial campaign in Benue State in 2007 and Director of Administration and Logistics of the Goodluck/Sambo Presidential Campaign Organization in 2011. 


He was PDP National Auditor before his appointment as Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in July 2011. Chief Dr. Ortom was proprietor and chairman, Oracle Business Limited the firm that owns Goshen Water which produces bottled and sachet water; Oracle Oil Mills, Oracle Printing Press, as well as Oracle Farms Limited which handles mechanized farming and animal husbandry. 


Oracle Business Limited acquired the moribund Benue State Government’s Plastics company and is sinking N1 billion into turning it around. The company is into polythene extraction as well as making of sanitary, sachet water, packaging and polythene bags. He was also chairman, Capital Prints Limited which handles commercial printing, publishing and documentation as well as chairman, Achive Engineering Limited which is into civil and mechanical construction. These companies have offered employment to hundreds. Chief Dr. Ortom was National President, Independent Print-Media Publishers Association of Nigeria, IPPAN, and at the moment is the patron of the association.

 He was appointed chairman of the governing council of the Standards Organization of Nigeria, SON, where he served with commitment and dedication. Perhaps the greatest manifestation of his humaneness lies in the establishment of Oracle Business Limited Foundation which handles redemptive, restorative and empowerment services. Under the Foundation Chief Dr. Ortom has set aside funds in St. Theresa’s Hospital, Makurdi and Rahama Hospital, Gboko Road, Makurdi for treatment of hernia and snakebites free of charge to the patients.

 Through the Foundation, Chief Dr. Ortom has reached out to prison inmates, preaching Christ as well as offering love and care while paying the fines of many who couldn’t. Another outreach of his has been the Oracle Driving School which turns out qualified drivers on a regular basis. The Minister is a recipient of several awards including Best Performing Local Government Chairman, 1992; those of the Nigeria Union of Teachers and Nigeria Labour Congress in Benue State as well as Selfless Service Award by the National Union of Benue State Students, University of Calabar. 

He was also given special recognition by the Nigeria Union of Road Transport Workers at the national level. As Minister of State, Industry, Trade and Investment, he has contributed immensely in the attraction of huge investments into Nigeria and facilitated the employment of hundreds. His additional responsibility of Supervising Aviation Minister has witnessed increased supervision of projects in the aviation sector. Chief Dr. Ortom is a politician with a humane and sensitive spirit. 

When the people of Benue State came under sustained attacks by Fulani herdsmen he suspended the pursuit of his governorship ambition for one month. He stated that it did not make sense to continue with political activities in pursuit of the ambition when the people he wished to govern were under continuous siege with hundreds of them killed. 

He said he would devote the one-month period to collaborate with the state and federal governments as well as other relevant authorities to find a permanent solution to the crises. Chief Dr. Ortom indeed went about donating relief materials to the displaced and collaborating with others in seeking to end the crisis. 

It is noteworthy that his collaborative efforts have yielded results as the attacks have subsided while concerted peace building efforts are being put in place. A dedicated Christian, Chief Dr. Ortom is a widely travelled man who has visited several countries in Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, Europe and Asia. 


Married with 10 children and four grand children his hobbies include badminton, reading, philanthropy, farming, aerobics and evangelism. His story which he told before the Nigerian Senate on Wednesday, 6th July, 2011 was so moving that Chief Dr. Ortom was asked to take a bow and go. 

Senators were stirred by an account of his background as a school dropout, a motor park tout and one who struggled to attain education through very difficult means. After running through his curriculum vitae, Senator Ehigie Uzamere, moved a motion, asking the Senate to allow him to take a bow without further questions because of his sincerity in uncovering his background. Senators described him as a veritable bridge between the poor and the rich

Source  https://samuelortom.com/my-profile/




Rt. Hon. (Prince) Terhemen Tarzoor was born on Wednesday 26th day of January, 1972 to the humble family of the late Chief Tarzoor Orbiam, immediate past Tyoor Mbawa and Mue Ter Mbawa in Makurdi Local Government Traditional Council and Mama Chive Orbiam of Mbawa, Sherev, Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State.

 Prince Tarzoor had his early education at All Saints Anglican Primary School, Makurdi between 1978-1984. In 1985, the young Terhemen gained admission into Community Secondary School Makurdi where in 1988 he bagged the Junior School Certificate of Education (JSCE). 

With this certificate in hand, Prince Terhemen Tarzoor sought and was given admission into the Senior Secondary School (SSS) of the prestigious Mount Saint Gabriel’s Secondary School where he obtained his Senior School Certificate of Education (SSCE) in May/June 1991. In the 1993/94 session, Prince Tarzoor secured admission into the School of General & Remedial Studies(now College of Advanced & Professional Studies) from where he proceeded to the then newly established Benue State University Makurdi to undergo a Bachelor of Science Degree Study in Economics. 

This he did with resounding success and in 1999 he graduated with a B.Sc. (Hons) Economics and proceeded to the mandatory National Youth Service Corps at the Central Bank of Nigeria in Enugu between 2000-2001 At the turn of the Millennium in the year 2000, Terhemen Tarzoor was admitted to do a Master of Science Degree in Business Administration (MBA) with bias in Banking and Finance. 

This he completed in 2003. Again in 2006, he sought and was given admission to the Benue State University Makurdi to read another Master of Science (M.Sc) Degree in Economics with specifics in Monetary Economics. This he completed in 2009. Rt. Hon. Prince Terhemen Tarzoor has currently completed his doctoral thesis for a Ph.D in Economics at the same Benue State University in Makurdi. 

Service to FatherLand In 2004, the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi engaged then Mr. Terhemen Tarzoor as Training Co-ordinator, Health Information Centre. His schedule of duty, inter alia, was to enlighten the uniformed people in the hinterland of Benue State on the ravaging effect of the scourging HIV/AIDS prevalence in the State. 

This he did with zeal, commitment, determination and the fear of God. In 2005, still with the services of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, Mr. Tarzoor took up appointment with the Benue State Polytechnic Ugbokolo as Part-Time Lecturer. Simultaneously, he was also employed as a Part-Time Lecturer with the University of Agriculture, Management Study Centre, Makurdi. In 2007, however, Prince Tarzoor took a bold step and delved into politics. He sought the mandate of his people to represent them at the Benue State House of Assembly. 

This desire came to fruition as he was elected into the Benue State House of Assembly, representing Makurdi North State constituency in the 2007 general elections. In the House, Hon. Tarzoor was first appointed House Committee Chairman on Agriculture and Natural Resources, during which period he also served as Member, House committees on Appropriation and Business and Rules. 

Hon. Tarzoor would later be appointed Acting Majority Leader in 2009 while in 2010, he was appointed to chair the Ad-hoc Committee on Civil Service Pensions, Gratuity and Death Benefits. He ended the 6th Assembly as the Chief Whip of the House. All these responsibilities, Tarzoor tackled with zeal and commitment. This therefore earned him the name which he is now popularly identified with as “ The Man Wey Sabi”.

 In 2011, Prince Tarzoor sought a second term in office to return to the Assembly. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him winner of the House of Assembly elections of April 2011 in his constituency. Back in the House, Tarzoor was unanimously endorsed by the elders of MINDA Intermediate Area as their preferred choice for the position of Speaker of the House. This endorsement was ratified by the members of the House of Assembly and Rt. Hon. Terhemen Tarzoor was elected Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly to lead the 7th Assembly.

 It was in this very position that Tarzoor’s knack for hardwork and tenacity for man management was brought to the fore. He led the assembly with so much vigor and inclusiveness that robust Benue legislative engagements became the cornerstone of her development. 

However, this new dawn of legislative oversight was short-lived as the Appeal Tribunal sitting in Makurdi later nullified the mandate handed to him by INEC for ‘perceived’ irregularities observed during the conduct of his April 2011 elections. The tears and confusion that greeted this verdict among Benue sons and daughters, both young and old, was indicative of the love and affection this young lawmaker enjoyed from the people. 

He therefore calmly retreated to his quiet abode in the intervening years to reflect on his years of service to the people and the developmental problems he had uncovered during his legislative tour of duty. Tarzoor knew Benue needed a young and dynamic solutions provider to take over from and continue with the milestones already set by previous administrations. After consulting widely with his immediate constituency, party elders, the Benue community at large as well as with the Executive Governor of Benue State, Rt. Hon. (Dr) Gabriel Suswam CON, he decided the time was right to offer himself up for service as the next Chief Executive of Benue State. 

As a first step towards the actualization of this aspiration journey, Tarzoor was roundly returned as the party standard bearer at the PDP Gubernatorial primaries held on Monday December 8th, 2014. Now, Rt Hon Prince Terhemen Tarzoor is proceeding on the next leg of this ardous journey and is asking the entire Benue electorate to let him serve them as the next Executive Governor of the State Awards Recieved Hon. Tarzoor is a recipient of several awards including that of the Good Performing Legislator’s Award by the Catholic Media Organization, award of Humble Man of the People by Takuruku Entertainment Limited among several others. 

Hon. Terhemen Tarzoor is a member of several associations and groups among which include:
 1. Member, Forum of Former Speakers of Nigeria 
2. Member, Forum of Former Assembly Members, Benue State 
3. Fellow, Chattered Institute of Economists of Nigeria 
4. Member, Benue State University Alumni Association
 5. Member, Mount Saint Gabriel’s Secondary School Old Boys Association
 6. Member, People’s Democratic Party Elders Committee, Benue State, among others 

 Mr. Tarzoor has attended several Workshops and Seminars, both local and international, prominent among which include the following: 1. Budget Retreat at Obudu Cattle Ranch 2. Entrepreneurship Development Workshop in Songhai 3. Seminar on Seven Building Blocks for Effective Legislative Performance, USA 4. Workshop on Agriculture and Water Processing, USA 5. Workshop on Water and Irrigation Farming, Isreal etc.

 Prince Tarzoor is widely traveled, having visited United States of America, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, Ghana, Thailand, Israel, England, Benin Republic , Tanzania among several others. Hon Tarzoor is happily married to Mrs. Sophie Erdoo Tarzoor and their marriage is blessed with three children: Torkuma, Msendoo and Oryiman. Tarzoor loves Reading and Playing Football '


Source: http://www.terhementarzoor.org/about-me/ 


You can click on the links below their profiles to read more and get further details on their strategy plan for the state.


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Dont forget your PVC is your WEAPON ! !