Former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has endorsed the Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, for a second term in office.

Ortom has not publicly declared his intention to seek a second term, but there are indications that he would run for governorship in the next general election.

Addressing a cross-section of Benue indigenes on Friday night at the Government House in Makurdi, Obasanjo, who led a team of the Zero Hunger Strategic Forum on a field visit to the state, described Ortom’s performance in the past two years as “fairly well”.

“Ortom is dancing fairly well. I saw some placards today (Friday) depicting 4+4, while we were on tour at Oracle farms as I was dancing with some local drummers. I just couldn’t talk and couldn’t campaign too.

“But in return, I signaled with my both hands and if Chief Barnabas Gemade saw nothing wrong with the sign language, so be it,” Obasanjo said.

The former president, who commended Ortom for “striving under hard condition to move the state forward”, recalled that he did not approve the candidature of the governor’s predecessor, Gabriel Suswam when Senator George Akume, the then governor introduced him as his successor.

He said, “from my vantage position, I saw what he (Akume) did not see at that time.”

Obasanjo however added that he gave Ortom his blessings when again in 2015, Akume brought the later to him and that he had urged them to work hard in other to win the election.

The ex-president further appealed to Nigerians and it leaders to shun things that encourage disunity or division, but rather embrace the responsibility to work for the greatness of the country, noting that the country has potentials for greatness.

Those present at the occasion included; Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State, a former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, a former deputy governor of Benue State, Chief Sule Iyaji, Gemade and Akume among others.