A former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Barnabas Gemade, has warned the Secretary to the Government of the Federation or SGF, Mr George Akume that no politician in Benue State has the power to stop the incumbent governor, Hyacinth Alia, from getting a second term ticket.
Gemade stated this at the reception held for board members recently appointed by President Bola Tinubu, at the Benue Hotel, Makurdi, the state capital.
Six of the board members appointed from the state (13) loyal to Akume shunned the reception leaving only seven loyalists of the governor in attendance.
He accused the politicians of using their positions to oppress their opponents, warning that such efforts always ended in futility.
Gemade, who once represented the North East Senatorial district of the state at the Senate, was one of the gubernatorial aspirants on the platform of the All Progressive Congress in 2023 but lost at the party primary to Alia, who was supported by Akume.
Gemade also challenged the outcome of the primary to the Supreme Court but lost.
Speaking he said, “In fact, even this time, except for the timely intervention of President Bola Tinubu, we would have gone with a very skewed appointment in the tertiary institution board.
“The first list that came out, maybe an event like this would not have been held here in Benue. But the governor, in his wisdom, stood up to the occasion and made sure that his impact was felt by stepping into the gap immediately and ensuring that some Benúe people that are the right people were appointed to these positions.
“You will agree with me that when the announcement was made the second time, there were 13 Benúe indigenes on that list. You seven people standing here today, show clearly that this is not all that were appointed. The others are not here.
“The governor is not the kind of person who will do what people who are very inconsiderate, so for our people, when he had this opportunity, he made sure that he had seven people going to that place to allow room for the remaining six or so, for other people who have made office to allow them to appoint people.
“Some, when they have the opportunity, they must make sure that if you are the kind of person who does not worship them, they must make sure you never get on that list.”
He added, “Nobody whatsoever is going to stop Governor Alia from making eight years of governorship.
“There are people in this state who tried to stop people from being governor but there are also other people who tried to stop governors from having a second term, and there are people here who made sure that governors have a second term.
“So, those who try to make sure a governor doesn’t have a second term must know that we are always here to make sure governors have a second term.
“And this particular governor deserves a second term more than anyone before him. And that is what is going to happen.”