HOW BENUE IS BLEEDING WHILE GOV ALIA OPERATES IN ISOLATION & SECRECY
… A CALL TO NATIONAL CONSCIENCE
By Dogo Fave Jude
It is with a heavy heart, deep concern, and a sense of patriotic duty that I write this article. I write not just as a citizen of Benue State, but as a witness to the continued neglect, manipulation, and misinformation being dished out by a government that has clearly lost touch with the realities on the ground. The truth must be told, and the people of Benue deserve better.
While communities are being wiped out by violent attacks, while lives are lost daily, and while widows and orphans multiply across villages, Governor Hyacinth Alia is operating in complete isolation. He seems more concerned about public image, ribbon cutting ceremonies, and inflated road projects than addressing the bloodshed that continues to stain our soil.
It is disturbing that the governor and his team repeatedly deny the insecurity in Benue. They confidently declare BENUE IS AT PEACE, while our people are being butchered. Who are they deceiving? Entire communities have been displaced, farmlands abandoned, and lives destroyed. Yet, because the crisis has not reached their own villages, they stand boldly before cameras and microphones to deny the truth.
Their denial is not just a slap in the face to victims; it is an insult to our collective intelligence. If your community has been spared, it should be an opportunity to use your position to speak for the voiceless not to silence their pain or twist the truth
The administration in Benue led by Alia today runs like a cult full of secrecy, fear, and silence. No one dares speak up. Anyone who questions the governor’s actions risks arrest, intimidation, or worse. Freedom of speech is under siege in a state that once stood proud and united.
While we are grappling with security and survival, the government is busy announcing road projects with highly suspicious costs. The most shocking of them all is the proposed construction of a 13-kilometer road at the cost of 68 BILLION NAIRA! Yes, you read that right. 68 billion naira for just 13 kilometers of road.
Let’s break that down:
N68 billion for 13km = approximately N5.2 billion per kilometer.
In comparison, the average cost of a standard federal road in Nigeria ranges from N300 million to N1 billion per kilometer, depending on terrain.
Where is the rest of the money going? Whose pockets are being lined? And even more troubling, this project was not even included in the initial budget presented to the public. How did the cost of road projects in the budget move from N13 billion to a staggering N72 billion? Who approved it? Where is the accountability?
Every action taken under this administration is being observed. The people may be silent now due to fear, but silence is not acceptance. Silence is a storm waiting to erupt. The lies, the suppression of information, the manipulation of public funds all of it will one day be exposed.
A government that hides information from its people is a government that has something to fear. But they should remember: nothing remains hidden forever. Every document they keep under lock and key will one day be brought to light.
This administration has turned a deaf ear to our pain and played with our emotional intelligence. It is infuriating and unacceptable. Governor Alia’s refusal to acknowledge the true situation in Benue is not just insensitive; it is dangerous. It emboldens the killers, discourages the victims, and destroys the public trust.
Benue State is bleeding. This is not just a Benue problem; it is a Nigerian problem. We are part of this nation, and we deserve the same level of security, development, and transparency that any other state enjoys.
We call on the federal government, civil society, and the press to investigate these killings, the suspicious road contracts, and the culture of silence in our state.
We are tired. We are angry. But most of all, we are awake.
We refuse to remain silent while our land is soaked in blood and our future mortgaged through fake projects and inflated contracts.
