Benue: Alia says record will secure re-election in 2027

Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has expressed confidence that his achievements in the past three years would secure his re-election in 2027.

The governor also described the criticism from a coalition of politicians in the state as nothing more than the “ranting of an ant”.

Alia spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, on Wednesday while reacting to a statement by the coalition’s National Secretary, Austin Agada, who vowed that the group would teach the governor a lesson in the forthcoming governorship election.

Agada is the factional state chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue State and is loyal to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume.

Agada had recently boasted during an interaction with journalists in Makurdi that the coalition would teach Governor Alia a serious lesson in 2027.

However, the governor’s aide described Agada’s comments as the “ranting of an ant”, stating that Alia, as a reformer, knew from the outset that many politicians would become his enemies because of his ideas. He added that the governor was not afraid of any political alliance against him.

Tersoo maintained that Alia’s administration was intensifying efforts to implement reforms across critical sectors, with the ultimate objective of improving residents’ living conditions.

He said, “The governor’s reform-driven approach informed the decision of the Tiv Traditional Council to confer on him the chieftaincy title of ‘Asortar U Benue’, meaning ‘The Reformer of Benue State’.

“Governor Alia is not distracted but remains more focused than ever on delivering democratic dividends to the people. The beneficiaries of this administration, including workers, market women, youths and the masses, appreciate Alia’s good works and would re-elect him in 2027.

“People say there is a coalition; it is not strange. Austin Agada came to say they will teach the governor a lesson. This is a man who failed to win his polling unit during the last election in 2023. He even engaged in anti-party activities and sold his vote to Senator Abba Moro of the PDP and was later suspended by his ward executive.

“People speak as if they are God. Governor Alia is with the masses of Benue State. Before becoming governor, as a priest, he was a representative of the people and knew their challenges. Let the people come out and reject him,” the CPS said.

On the lingering political cold war between the governor and the SGF, Tersoo insisted that Alia, as the leader of the party in the state, would not bow to an individual but would remain accountable to the people.

Asked why the governor had disregarded the President’s directive to give all incumbent representatives automatic tickets during the primaries, Tersoo said the state had its own political peculiarities.

“In Benue, we respect rotational arrangements as well as individual performance, so the governor is a product of rotational arrangements,” he said.