The Governor of Benue State, Hyacinth Alia, has dismissed threats by the Rainbow Coalition to work against his re-election in 2027, saying his projects and development initiatives will speak for him.
Alia said he was not worried about the political alliance, which has pledged to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, insisting that his administration remained focused on delivering democratic dividends to the people of the state.
The governor was reacting to comments by the factional chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue State, Austin Agada, who said the coalition would teach him a political lesson in the 2027 general elections.
NEWSNGR recalls that Agada had accused Alia of failing to give the coalition reasons to support his re-election bid. He also alleged that the governor disregarded Tinubu’s directive that incumbent political office holders elected on the APC platform should be allowed to seek re-election.
According to Agada, party stakeholders had accepted the proposal, but Alia allegedly backed other aspirants against the arrangement.
“We accepted the proposal that every incumbent should be allowed to go for a second term, but the governor refused the proposal. He even allowed some of his cronies like Gabriel Suswam to take some members of the party to court,” Agada said.
However, Alia, through his Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, questioned Agada’s political influence, citing his failure to deliver his Owukpa-Ehaje Council Ward in Ogbadibo Local Government Area to the APC during the 2023 general elections.
The governor’s aide argued that Agada’s performance in his ward did not place him in a position to determine the outcome of future elections in the state.
Kula also praised Alia for contributing significantly to Tinubu’s victory in Benue State during the 2023 presidential election.
“Tinubu would not have won the election in Benue State without the strong support of Governor Alia,” he said.
According to him, the 22,000 votes recorded for Tinubu in Vandeikya Local Government Area and 12,000 in Ushongo Local Government Area were because of the Governor’s influence.
The CPS argued that Agada, on his part, failed to deliver his council ward to the APC in the 2023 election.
Alia reiterated his commitment to transforming the state, saying political alignments and opposition would not distract his administration ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
He said his government was intensifying reforms across critical sectors to improve residents’ living conditions.
The governor attributed the Tiv Traditional Council’s decision to confer on him the chieftaincy title of “The Reformer of Benue State” to his reform-driven approach to governance.
According to him, years of interaction with residents had deepened his understanding of their needs and the factors behind the state’s challenges, giving his administration a clearer basis for developing Benue.
