Gov. Alia Reveals Reasons Behind Benue APC Crisis

Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State has attributed the crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state to his refusal to allow some party chieftains to control government funds.

Alia said some influential members of the ruling party wanted to turn Benue State into their private estate, but he had resisted their attempts.

The governor made this known on Saturday while speaking at the Adamawa State Tiv Day celebration in Yola, where he addressed the lingering disagreements within the APC in Benue.

“The APC crisis you people are seeing in Benue State is not because I’m not working for the people of the state. Some chieftains of the party want to convert the state into their private estate and I said it will not happen under my leadership,” he said.

“There was Benue State before those individuals and there will be Benue State after those individuals. I was voted by Benue people. Nobody has more than one vote, so the people of the state will decide my fate and not a few individuals who believe in their families’ interests and not the state’s interest,” he added.

Alia, who was represented at the event by the Executive Secretary of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency, James Iorpuu, urged Tiv people living in Adamawa State to be good ambassadors of Benue and promote peace and unity.

He maintained that no single ethnic group could build Nigeria alone, stressing the need for all ethnic groups to work together towards building a peaceful nation for future generations.

The governor also donated N5 million towards the construction of a Tiv unity house in Adamawa State, describing peace and unity as essential ingredients for development.

His comments come amid a deepening political disagreement within the Benue APC following the emergence of a coalition led by Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, to mobilise support for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima in 2027.

The Benue APC had rejected the coalition, known as the Strategic Alliance for Tinubu/Shettima Re-election 2027, alleging that it was designed to undermine Alia’s chances of securing a second term as governor.

Politics Nigeria reports that the Director-General of the Benue State Tinubu/Alia 2027 Campaign Council, Citizen Richard Asema, stated the party’s position during a press briefing last week, expressing concerns over the involvement of prominent APC members and opposition politicians in the alliance.

Among those identified were Akume and the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Professor Joseph Utsev.

Asema questioned the composition of the alliance, particularly the involvement of governorship candidates of opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), as well as members of other minority parties.

He said, “The Benue State Chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) views with serious concern the purported formation of the ‘Strategic Alliance For Tinubu/Shettima Re-election 2027’ by some political individuals and groups and the subsequent announcement of a Campaign Council for the re-election of our dear President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“The APC in Benue State under the leadership of Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia and the Chairmanship of Benjamin Omale, wishes to strongly reject this purported Strategic Alliance and its Campaign Council.”

The campaign council alleged that the alliance was intended to sabotage Alia’s re-election bid while presenting itself as a platform supporting Tinubu’s second-term ambition.

“From all credible intelligence available to the party, this Strategic Alliance has a hidden agenda, which is to sabotage the election of Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia in the 2027 elections, while masquerading as supporters of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Asema added.

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