Benue State Governor, Fr. Hyacinth Alia has again debunked rumors of discord between him and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Sen. George Akume.
Alia said the speculations exist solely in the imaginative realm of opportunists, instigators of turmoil, and merchants of mischief who thrive on chaos.
The governor who disclosed this during a colloquium/symposium organised by the State government as part of activities to mark the 70th birthday of Sen Akume and his homecoming after his appointment by President Bola Tinubu as SGF, emphasized that the speculated fracas is only a figment of the imagination crafted by those who seek to profit from crisis.
The governor who described Akume as a virtue of a true democrat, open-minded and flexible in the marketplace of ideas, explained that the aim of the programme was to use the opportunity to foster discourse on good governance and national cohesion.
He said, “For pockets of disenchanted members of our party here in the state, we are already in talks to address various areas of discontent. However, while we try to do so, we shall ensure that the will of the masses who voted us into office, prevails. This is because we are determined not to distort the organic relationship between the people and our government”.
“After a very careful thought by my administration on how best to honour our leader Sen. Akume, on his 70th birthday anniversary, we decided to put together this colloquium/symposium as part of activities to mark his homecoming, aim at fostering discourse on good governance and national cohesion.
“We also thank President Tinubu for giving notable leadership positions to various sons and daughters of Benue to contribute their quota towards national development which is a clear demonstration that indeed, Benue has now taken its rightful position in the political space of the country”.
“I want to specially commend you Sen. Dr. Akume, for ensuring that since the inception of the Fourth Republic, you not only develop a whole generation of persons who grow to become, in various respects leaders, but for also allowing that group of people to develop ideas to even contradict and controvert yours many times. And many times, you either gave in to those ideas, or simply walked away without truncating them, all for the greater good”,
Alia said adding that, “within this short period of your current appointment which I consider to be very strategic, you have played a very pivotal role in the ratification of several federal projects/intervention programmes here in the State.
“For instance, the approval by Mr President for the establishment of the ‘Renewed Hope Shelter Programme’ pilot scheme in the state, aimed at relocating IDPs back to their various ancestral homes, was partly possible through your instrumentation”.
