Samuel Ioraer Ortom is the current governor of Benue state, he was born on 23 April 1961, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria).
He attended 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. He was admitted into Idah Sec
ondary 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 got
into the Gboko motor park as a tout. He was later employed as a professional driver to Pa Samu Ihugh.
He later enrolment into the National School of
Salesmanship, Manchester, where he obtained
the General Certificate of Education (GCE) as well as a diploma in
salesmanship.
He thereafter enrolled at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria,
and obtained both the Interim Joint Matriculation Board Certificate in
1995 and a 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 a Master of Public Administration in 2004.
He crowned his educational pursuit with a Doctor of Philosophy
(PhD), from the Commonwealth University, Belize, through distance
learning.
His working experience spans the private, public, and 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
People's Party (APP); and State Secretary as well as Deputy Chairman of
the People's 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.
In April 2015, he contested for Governor of Benue State and won under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC)
He 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 the 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.
He is an industrialist, farmer, businessman, politician, philanthropist,
administrator and employer.
He
ran a two-years Ordinary National Diploma (OND) program in Science Laboratory
Technology at Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro in Around 1984.