Tag: Akume

  • No rift between Gov Alia, Akume, says CPS

    No rift between Gov Alia, Akume, says CPS

    Kulas Tersoo, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Hyacinth Alia, has said that his principal has no problem with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume.

    In a press statement released on Monday, October 9, and provided to The Nation in Makurdi, Tersoo addressed the persistent speculation from the opposition camp about a strained relationship between Governor Alia and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume.

    He said in the contrary there is nothing of such, saying that Governor Alia and Senator Akume enjoyed the best of relationship.

    Read Also: Disregard Akume’s detractors, Onjeh tells Tinubu

    The statements read: “Yesterday, Sunday, October 8th, 2023, another group came up with a Press Conference in Makurdi where they tried to give credence to some unfounding rumours by linking Governor Alia and the Government of Benue State as complaining of the SGF’s alleged meddlesomeness in the running of government in the state. It is on the basis of this that we have decided to make a statement in this regard.

    “There exists no bad blood between Governor Hyacinth Alia and the SGF. The governor has at different fora, and most recently during a victory parade organised for him by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, declared that the SGF remains the leader of the party in the state and that there is no issue between them as being speculated by people who don’t mean well for the state.

    “Jealous elements, especially, the opposition who are waiting to see a fight between us should be ashamed of themselves. I am working hand in hand with my leader, Sen. George Akume.”

    “The governor regards the Secretary to the Government of the Federation as a respected leader of the party not just in the state, but the North Central and therefore, will no longer continue to keep quiet as some opportunistic elements desperately seek to pitch them against each other for their inordinate pecuniary gain.

    “The opposition elements trying to foist a crack among the party’s leaders in the state by sponsoring malicious and vexatious press conferences should desist forthwith, as the Governor and the SGF’s relationship goes way back and will continue to wax stronger.”

  • Akume inaugurates skills acquisition centre, water project in Benue towns

    Vice Chairman, North, All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council Senator Dr. George Akume yesterday inaugurated a skills acquisition centre at Ikpayongo and a water project in Aliade town, both executed by him.

    Performing the ceremonies, the senator representing Benue North West District said he had chosen not to parade the projects during the  electioneering period, saying he valued the impact they would bring to bear on his constituents more than any political colouration.

    He lamented the absence of white collar jobs, but expressed optimism that with the available trainings at the centre, trainees would be exposed to various skills that would add value to their lives and their communities.

    Akume urged the those partaking in the trainings and their instructors to take it seriously and urged the host community to protect the facilities from vandals.

    At the water plant, Akume said he was poised to execute the project to end the perennial water scarcity that has lingered in Aliade town for years.

    Benue APC governorship candidate Emmanuel Jime hailed Akume for executing such legacy projects that will have direct benefits on the people.

    Jime said the good legacies a man leaves would outlive him, noting that the Benue State Government on the other hand has no such projects anywhere, reason he was convinced Governor Samuel Ortom did not deserve to continue as governor.

    He urged APC supporters to be strong and accompany him to the Benue State Election Petitions Tribunal next week, where he seeks to interrogate PDP’s purported victory.

  • Akume: massive rigging characterised polls in Benue

    Last Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections were characterised by various irregularities in Benue State, it has been learnt.

    The state’s All Progressives Congress (APC) Leader and former Governor George Akume made the allegation against the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

    He said: “There was total lack of security to ensure compliance with the Electoral Act and this opened the gate for these irregularities to be carried out with impunity.

    “The lack of security, for instance, made it possible for Governor Samuel Ortom, who is supposed to be the Chief Security Officer of Benue State, to become the biggest security violator in the state. He trained and armed a group of criminals whom he calls the ‘Livestock Guards’ and who were meant originally to enforce the anti-open grazing law currently in operation in Benue.

    “The ‘Livestock Guards’ have since the approach of elections abandoned their mandate and have become Governor Ortom’s private army authorised to harass, intimidate and even kill those who do not support him. Governor Ortom has also imported police and army uniforms, which he has distributed to the so-called ‘Livestock Guards’ to visit mayhem on defenceless citizens.

    “The former head of the ‘Livestock Guards’, Mr Aliyu Teshaku, said in a recent media interview that the ‘Livestock Guards’ are led by convicted criminals whose names he gave during the interview. The activities of these so-called ‘Livestock Guards’ were particularly noticeable in Guma, Gwer West, Gwer East, Gboko, Logo, Kwande and Vandeikya local government areas during last Saturday’s elections.

    Read also: Reimagining the chaotic splendour of Lagos traffic

    “To convince the voters in the state that they mean business in their assignment to assassinate anybody who stands in their way – the killer squads – which have been spread across Benue State since February 14, gunned down the APC Chairman in Ohimini Local Government Area, after he left a meeting with his party comrades. It was a clear case of political assassination.

    “Apart from killing political opponents, the ‘Livestock Guards’ have been doing their best to cause a breakdown of law and order in Benue by either attacking farmers under the guise of herdsmen or killing or rustling herdsmen’s cattle. All these tactics are aimed at creating an atmosphere of insecurity and scaring away genuine voters and agents of opposing political parties.

    “In the targeted local government areas, most of which are in the North West Senatorial District of the state, and even beyond, political thugs employed by the governor’s party, the PDP, had a field day by hijacking ballot boxes and other electoral materials.

    “These were then taken to places where the ordinary voter had no access and the ballot papers stamped. Fantastic votes were subsequently allocated to PDP candidates, as dictated by agents of the party, while small votes were allocated to other parties. It is based on these fabricated figures that the INEC in the wee hours of Tuesday morning announced a result indicating that President Muhammadu Buhari had been defeated by Atiku Abubakar with a gap of over 7,000 votes in Benue State.

    “A report released by Mr Jimmy Feyisola George of Grass Roots Empowerment IPD, an accredited INEC independent local observer, said the irregularities and manipulations were targeted at Senator George Akume, the senator representing the district, who was also in the race for re-election in last Saturday’s polls.

    “The observers noted in their report that the irregularities were most prevalent in voting units at: Binev, Mbaya, Etulo, and Mbaikaan, Mbaatirkyaa, Mbaapen Wards of Buruku local government areas.

    “Mbachouhou, Gbaage-Tongov, Deneb Nyamshi, Sengev-Yenge and Tijime wards of Gwer-West Local Government Area (were also affected).

    “In Gboko Local Government Area, the malpractices were most common in Yandev, Anshangapa, Ipav, Mbakper and others. The hijacked materials were taken to the house of an erstwhile senator and prominent politician where the mass thumb-printing of the ballot papers was done in favour of the PDP.

    “In Gwer-East Local Government Area, the malpractices were prevalent in Mbalom and Ikyonov wards while in Guma and Makurdi local government areas, the malpractices were found mostly in Nzorov, Mbadwem, Saav and part of Abinsi.

    “Given the extent of malpractices recorded by the accredited observers, they have called for a cancellation of the results for the North West Senatorial District in Benue State.

    “There is a big question waiting for an answer about the ‘Janjaweed-like’ election in Benue State: What is the role of INEC in the farce? This question is very pertinent because for reasons that are very difficult to see, INEC workers appear to have collaborated fully with those involved in this massive electoral heist.

    “It is pertinent that a full investigation is carried out to find out what role was played by individuals and institutions in the anti-democratic exercise that took place in Benue State on February 23.”

     

  • Ortom would have long been removed under an Obasanjo govt —Akume

    Senator George Akume was the first Benue State governor to spend two terms in office, a feat his former political loyalist and incumbent governor, Daniel Ortom, is seeking to replicate. Akume told Assistant Editor JIDE BABALOLA, that his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) remains in control of Benue State in spite of Ortom’s defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He explains why the leadership of the Senate has not changed, among other issues.

    MANY Nigerians are wondering why it has been difficult for APC to use its numbers and the capacity it claims to have in taking control of the Senate…

    Well, APC has numerical strength in both chambers. Even right now, we have the numbers. But the leadership of the National Assembly emerged from a different perspective. It was not in tandem with the thinking and positioning of the party. Our party had carefully zoned these positions in line with the realities and diversity of our country.

    But again, we still want to give credit to the President and the executive that we have a measure of stability in the National Assembly. We can all recall what happened between 1999 and 2003. The leadership turnover was massive, almost a game of musical chairs. Leadership change was sometimes every year or every six months—Enwerem, Okadigbo, Anyim, Wabara. Then we ended up with Ken Nnamani. So, you see, this is the difference between the approach and policies of Muhammadu Buhari and the understanding of others who came before him.

    Before Buhari, there was massive intervention in the National Assembly based on the special interests of the Presidency. There was no respect whatsoever for the concept and practice of separation of powers. That is the difference between Muhammadu Buhari and those who came before him. I do know that given the same scenario under an Obasanjo presidency, things would have changed. But here is a man who is resolute that the National Assembly should run its own affairs as best as it can. So, the ordinary man must take cognizance of this. We are all students of history. What we have before and what is happening today are worlds apart, and this is because of the different personalities and their orientations.

    You were the first to be elected twice as the governor of Benue State with several other political victories to your credit. With your erstwhile political associate, Governor Samuel Ortom, moving to the PDP, do you think that the victories of the past can still be replicated by you and your loyalists in Benue State in the forthcoming elections?

    Politics is a dynamic game. It is as dynamic as law. That is why you cannot rule out the question of alliances in political formations and the critical behaviour of political actors at any given moment. One thing that is very clear is that you can never read adequately and correctly the human psyche. You can never understand a human being fully from the way he presents himself, and that is why Shakespeare said that there is no art to find the mind’s construction in the face. Very true! When you transfer this into the political arena, it is even doubly true.

    The present Benue State governor was in ANPP (All Nigeria Peoples Party) when we won election in 1999. We brought him later into the party and made him the party secretary and started building him up. He later became deputy party chairman and rose to become a Minister of State at the national level. I fled the PDP at that time because there were forces that were deliberately constructed to deconstruct me politically. So, I had to flee to seek expression of my political career on another platform.

    Along with my colleagues and associates, we built a very formidable platform, the ACN of Benue State, and made it sufficient strong to confront the non-performing government of Gabriel Suswan and we defeated them. But we were denied victory because of the Nigerian factor and, of course, we continued to soldier on, and we formed the APC. I brought Ortom in from the PDP. Of course, he is always coming from another political party. I planted him and he won the election. I gave him a copy of the manifesto of our party, he digested it to the best of his knowledge – at least, that was what he told me—and we expected quite a lot from him because of his humble background, just like me.

    I look at myself essentially as a village boy thrust out by society to support the under-privileged and to work for common goals. That is my mission in politics. I thought that because of his background, he would do the same thing. But we are in a situation that a governor cannot pay salaries for over 12 months or pay pensions for over 14 months and primary school teachers in various local governments too. Then you have a crisis!

    My emphasis has always been that the welfare of the civil servant is paramount and our party is sufficiently committed to the welfare of all. When you work, you must be paid your wages. Guided by the understanding of this and the position of our party, the President decided to give special support to Benue and other states. He released a lot of money to clear arrears of salaries. Most of the states took advantage to clear the arrears accordingly, but why is Benue an exception?

    There is no project in the state that was initiated, completed and commissioned by the governor. There is nothing!

    In one of his recent interviews, Governor Ortom explicitly said that he was a billionaire before he became a governor, and that you once told him that you could not run a company.

    He showed you his asset declaration forms that he was a billionaire before he became a governor? What business was he doing that he became a billionaire? He had a small printing press which I supported. And when I left government, it collapsed. Gabriel Suswan’s elder brother took over the printing jobs in Benue State but the whole thing he (Governor Ortom) was running collapsed.

    Abubakar Tsav said don’t run faster than your legs can carry you. We shall be there. The billionaire man who became governor! So, he is the first billionaire to become a governor? He was not a billionaire. He couldn’t even finance his campaign, so, what is he talking about being a billionaire? Does he have the tax records to prove it? I know what we harvested from our party and ploughed into his gubernatorial campaign. He wasn’t a billionaire. Let him show us those papers – taxes and asset declaration forms—and prove it so simply. Unless he was a seer, anticipating becoming a billionaire in the office.

    What I am basically saying is that with him, we thought the party and the state had a wonderful opportunity to work for the people. I gave him advice. I told him that the late Aper Aku remains a sign post in the development of Benue State. He had fundamental ideas and started faithful implementation of these ideas. His policies were sound until the prices of oil collapsed and it became very difficult for him to pay salaries. It was a challenge across the board in the entire country. The nation’s economy was affected. Aku found it very difficult to win election in 1983.

    Gabriel Suswam didn’t pay salaries for four months, we capitalised on that and he lost the election. Ortom is owing salaries for how many months now and, therefore, he has no right to run. What we keep telling the people of Benue State is that if you are in the public service and you want to overtake Aliko Dangote overnight, then, certainly, you have no business being in the public service. Aliko Dangote is a hard working young man. He hails from a family of businessmen and, of course, don’t forget the fact that ancient trade caravan routes passed through Kano, so they could draw from that centuries old experience. But see somebody who was born in the bush like many of us, and suddenly, you say you are a multi-billionaire, you are chasing Dangote, you are about to overtake Dangote.

    The local government system has collapsed absolutely in Benue State.  Chairmen of local governments are being sacked left and right, especially those who refused to move with him to PDP. But to him, it is perfectly right, legal and constitutional to move with our (APC) mandate to PDP. And these are the people who talk about impunity at the national level! We must always commend President Buhari, because if it were Obasanjo, he would have been removed long ago! And don’t forget what Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, the PDP candidate, said in Kogi that if you don’t pay salaries as a governor, you are not fit to come back for a second term.

    Alhaji Atiku said that as VP, he worked against the re-election of Mbadinuju of Anambra State for a second term because he couldn’t pay salaries. He said he told President Obasanjo not to support Mbadinuju for a comeback. I believe that he was also indirectly addressing Ortom. The leadership of his party is clearly sending him a message. Then, remember what governor Wike said about him; that this man could not even pay salaries while Rivers State was busy empowering young people and he (Ortom) was busy giving out wheelbarrows. Even that his wheelbarrow, how many of them were given out to youths? Three hundred and fifty. I am not a governor, but I supplied 500 Keke NAPEPs and over 500 motorcycles as a deliberate effort to empower the youth.

    Are you aware that since the unfortunate events of January last year, some of those leading PDP in Benue state are alleging that APC is the party backing the herdsmen?

    I want to put things in the right perspective. The killings in Benue State started in 2009. We had always co-existed peacefully with the Fulani. I saw it when I was a boy growing up in the village. They would come to graze, my father would give them a place and when they finished, they would leave and come back the next year. I never knew where they came from or where they went to until I got to secondary school in 1968. And the movement had always been seasonal.

    I was governor for eight years. The Fulani were there, but did you hear of killings? No. Suswan came in. In 2009, there were killings. Jonathan never sent anyone from the Presidency to go condole with anybody in Benue State. And I remember what Suswam said then; that Tiv people were eating Fulani people’s cows; that they liked cow meat. But when people were killed (last year), President Buhari sent General Dambazau, the Minister of Interior, to take a look at it all and condole us. We went to the mortuary, they addressed a press conference and so on and so forth. Who was sent next? The Vice President. These never happened under Jonathan’s presidency.

    And Buhari, the President himself, came to Benue State after the Vice President’s visit. The President ordered the security chiefs to handle things with dispatch. Through ‘Operation Ayem A’Kpatuma,’ sanity has been restored. Have you heard of such killings again? It is not because of Ortom. What has he done to stop the killings? So, this has nothing to do with objective reality. They have nothing to do with APC.

    Was APC in power 2009? When Boko Haram was ravaging this country was APC in power? When they were bombing somewhere in Kano, bombing mosques here and bombing churches there, was APC in power?

  • Oshiomhole, Amaechi, Akume to Nigerians: shun PDP, Atiku

    National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, yesterday advised  Nigerians, especially  youths, to keep their distance  from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential flag bearer, Alhaji Atiku  Abubakar, in their own interest and that of Nigeria.

    Oshiomhole with whom were Transportation Minister Rotimi Ameachi and former governor of Benue State, Senator  George Akume, told the people of  Plateau State to be wary of empty promises from the PDP in the build-up to this year’s elections.

    They spoke at the flag-off of the campaign for the re-election of Governor Simeon Lalong of Plateau State at Rwang Pam Township Stadium, Jos.

    Oshiomole, who received hundreds of defectors from the PDP and other political parties at the rally, urged Nigerians to reject Alhaji Atiku.

    The PDP, according to him, is out to sell Nigeria and urged the people to say “no to Atiku.”

    Amaechi described Lalong as a humble person who has lived up to his campaign promises.

    He blasted the PDP for anchoring its campaign on alleged hunger in Nigeria.

    He said if PDP leaders who ruled Nigeria in the past had not milked Nigeria dry, Nigeria would have been better off today.

    He said:”The next election is not about Buhari and Atiku, but it should be about what the PDP has done in 16 years and what the APC has done in three years. Buhari is addressing the problems of Nigeria and very soon we will overcome the present challenges.”

    Wife of the President,  Aisha Buhari, who was represented by former Deputy Governor of Plateau State, Dame Pauline Tallen, said a vote for Buhari and Lalong is a vote for the development of Nigeria and Plateau State.

    She admonished women and youths in Plateau to mobilize massive votes for the President and all APC candidates during the 2019 general elections.

    Senator Akume said Buhari is far better than Atiku in meeting the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians.

    Governor Lalong described Buhari as his political godfather.

    He said:”When I was elected in 2015, I never knew where to start, but when I went to Mr President, he extended his support.

    “He has given us peace on the Plateau and anytime I ask him for anything, he never hesitates in granting my request.

    “So, Buhari is my political godfather.’’

    The defectors, who formally joined the APC yesterday, were led by ex-factional Chairman of National Football Association (NFA), Chris Giwa, while chairmen of 45 political parties in the state endorsed Buhari and Lalong for the 2019 elections.

    Oshiomole urged the defectors to join the re-enforcement of the power of the broom in providing quality and purposeful leadership in the country.

  • Ortom to report Akume to Tiv Council over comments on killings

    Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has threatened to report former Governor George Akume to the Supreme Assembly of the Tiv Area Traditional Council for accusing the state government of masterminding the killings in the state.

    Ortom spoke at Tyulen in Guma Local Government Area during at the burial of Mama Roseline Adzuu, mother of the lawmaker representing Guma in the House of Assembly, Mr. Terseer Adzuu and the governor’s Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Administration, Frank Adzuu.

    The governor said since Akume, a senator and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), told President Muhammadu Buhari that militia herdsmen were not behind the killing of Benue residents, it implied that he has adequate knowledge about the killings.

    He challenged the senator to tell the traditional council details of what he knows.

    Read also: Akume’s comment on Benue killings baseless, says Ortom

    Ortom described as shocking and unfortunate, Akume’s utterances, saying they were clearly in favour of enemies of the state.

    The governor wondered why the former governor, who he said was expected to provide leadership to the younger generation, took sides with those he said had vowed to deprive his people of their ancestral land.

     

     

     

  • Akume, Lawan win senatorial tickets

    The immediate past chairman of Benue State Board of Internal Revenue Service (BIRS), Mrs. Mimi Orubibi, has emerged as All Progressive Congress (APC) candidate for Benue north east senatorial zone otherwise known as Zone A.

    Mrs. Orubibi polled 1,391 votes to beat Mathias Byuan who came second with 279 votes.

    Orubibi will square up against Senator Barnabas Gemade, who joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP) after defecting from the APC and former Governor Gabriel Suswam, who picked the PDP senator ticket in the general elections.

    In APC Benue south senatorial zone known as Zone C, former Deputy governor Chief Steven Lawani beat former National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) president Daniel Onjehwith 1,321 votes against 1,059.

    Senator George Akume was unanimously endorsed as the APC consensus candidate for Benue north -west senatorial zone.

     

  • Ortom to Akume: showcase your achievements

    Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has challenged Senator George Akume to showcase his achievements in his 11 years sojourn as a senator “instead of castigating me at every opportunity”.

    “Akume should showcase his score card. He has been in the senate for more than 11 years, and the constituents want to hear what he has done. He appears obsessed with abusing me every minute; that is not what the people want to hear,” Ortom told reporters yesterday in Makurdi.

    The governor spoke through his media aide, Tahav Agerzua, at a special interaction with reporters.

    He said: “The man (Akume) keeps insulting me at every turn. But, while he is raising questions about me, more questions are being raised about whether he has been an asset or liability to the people.

    “Nobody should boast that he can make someone governor; only God can do that. Mr Aper Aku became the first civilian governor without anyone’s support; Rev. Fr Moses Adasu moved from the Church to the Government House without a political godfather.

    “So, it is wrong for anyone to claim that he made me governor and could unseat me.”

    The governor dismissed claims he gave N2 billion to eight governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He wondered where such money could have come from.

    He rejected claims he is afraid to contest the PDP governorship primary, saying he won the primary before picking the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2014.

    The governor alleged Akume is struggling to pit him against PDP governorship aspirants because he rejected the automatic ticket offered by the APC.

    “PDP will not force Ortom on its members. Let all aspirants canvass for votes from the delegates and refrain from media wars,” he said.

    The governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Tourism and Cultural Development, James Bemgbator Mede, has resigned his appointment. He vowed to remain in APC.

    Mede, who was at the APC secretariat in Makurdi, cited the absence of focused political ideology and synergy of political participation among appointees as reasons for his resignation.

    He said he could not continue to work with “strange bed fellows”.

    The ex-special assistant  vowed not to leave APC, and thanked the governor for giving him the opportunity to work, even as he promised to work hard for the victory of APC.

  • APC crisis: Akume urges APC supporters to be calm

    Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue state Senator George Akume has charged supporters not to panic but remain focused.

    He spoke yesterday at the funeral ceremony of his domestic staff, the late Imo Shom also known as Orshoja.

    The Zone B Senator said he was aware of all the political shakings in the state but described them as signs of better things to come.

    He urged those who believe in the APC never to swerve positions, noting he was not in a hurry to curry public sympathies with words.

    While describing the deceased as a focused and diligent person appreciated by all who knew him, Senator Akume said men like the late Imo Shom were very rare to come by.

    He pledged to take up the sponsorship of the deceased’s children in their various institutions.

    The former Senate Minority Leader insisted despite so many betrayals he has faced in life, he was more poised to help as many as God would bring his way with his little resources.

    Born on 15th August 1948, the late Imo Shom joined the Nigerian Army in 1969 and fought the Nigerian civil war.

    He retired from service on December 31, 2002 as Assistant Brigade Chief Clerk and has been into active politics until his death June 23, at 69.

     

     

  • APC summons feuding Ortom, Akume

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has summoned Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom and his political godfather Senatr George Akume to Abuja.

    This followed yesterday’s statement by the governor that he had been shut out of the party. He hinted of his plan to defect from the party.

    Sources said last night that Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawal Shu’aibu, invited them for the meeting in Abuja.

    Ortom said the APC gave him a red card.

    Speaking at the Government House in Makurdi while swearing-in the Special Adviser on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs Jerome, Tor Shine.

    Ortom, who is believed to be heading to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said: “APC has given me red card, they shut me outside; I’m now party less but may soon decide my next journey.”

    But a party member, who pleaded for anonymity, said Ortom is already a member of the PDP.

    He advised the governor to tell his followers the truth about his decision.

    But National Chairman of the APC Comrade Adams Oshiomhole dismissed reports of Ortom’s exit, saying the party did not shut its doors on any governor elected on its platform.

    Oshiomhole, who addressed reporters after a meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC), said the governor assured him severally that he will not leave the party.

    He noted that if Ortom has actually left, the party will need to study the situation before formally reacting to it.

    “Governor Ortom is a very senior member of the party and he has said so repeatedly in print, and even told me that he will not leave the APC unless he was pushed out.

    “I have since assumed chairmanship of this party along with my colleagues in the NWC and I know of a fact that we have not shut out any governor and certainly not governor Ortom.”