Former Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom accussed his successor, Governor Hyacinth Alia, of subverting the rule of law, witch-hunting political rivals, and failing to curb the state’s worsening security crisis.
Ortom, who spoke on Tuesday during a broadcast interview with ARISE NEWS, declared that he and his political structure have formally parted ways with the political structure that brought the Catholic priest-turned-politician to power in 2023.
Expressing disappointment with the state’s current direction, Ortom asserted that democratic governance in Benue has been replaced by arbitrary rule, executive hostility, and a refusal to abide by valid court judgments.
Ortom accused Alia’s administration of seizung 23 government vehicles lawfully allocated to him, his former deputy, and cabinet members by the State Executive Council upon the conclusion of their tenure.
The former Governor explained that the vehicles, having served past the four-year threshold, were retired and boarded out according to long-standing civil service precedent.
Although he challenged the impoundment in court, securing an order for the immediate release of the fleet alongside N5 million in awarded damages, the former governor revealed that the Alia administration has defiantly held on to the vehicles for about a year without even lodging an appeal.
The former governor also took aim at Alia’s handling of local governance and state revenue.
He dismissed claims of local government autonomy under the current administration as an illusion, alleging that council chairmen have been stripped of operational independence while local council areas outside the state capital, Makurdi, languish without grassroots projects.
Ortom noted that despite the massive surge in federal allocations following the removal of the petrol subsidy, the administration has failed to demonstrate tangible fiscal accountability or execute transformative infrastructure across the state’s 22 local councils.
Addressing the security situation, Ortom accused Governor Alia of displaying a stubborn disregard for collaborative leadership, specifically alleging that the governor ignored an explicit directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to summon an all-inclusive stakeholders’ security council following the Yelwata massacre.
According to Ortom, Tinubu had advised the governor to convene former military and civilian governors, alongside traditional leaders, to forge a united front in Abuja, yet Alia unilaterally discarded the proposal and has continuously rebuffed phone calls and overtures from his predecessor.
Ortom also formally declared his backing for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid.
The former governor, who broke ranks with his party to endorse Labour Party candidate Peter Obi in 2023, explained that he has since reconciled with political realities and remains fully aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Ortom affirmed that while he respects the finality of the Supreme Court judgment affirming Alia’s 2023 mandate, he and his grassroots network will vigorously mobilize against the current administration at the state level by fielding and backing an independent slate of candidates across governorship, National Assembly, and State Assembly seats in 2027.