By Brenda Agba
“Contrary to speculations that there is a rift between the Executive Governor of Benue State, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. Dr. George Akume, there is no bad blood between the duo.”
This was contained in a statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Sir Tersoo Kula.
According to the statement, “there is this continuous speculation from the opposition camp that there exists bad blood between the Governor and the SGF.
“Ordinarily, we wouldn’t have bothered to respond to this, but Joseph Goebbels once said that ”If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.”
The statement further reads that: “Yesterday, Sunday, October 8th, 2023, another group came up with a Press Conference in Makurdi where they tried to give credence to some unfounding rumours by linking Governor Alia and the Government of Benue State as complaining of the SGF’s alleged meddlesomeness in the running of government in the state.
“It is on the basis of this that we have decided to make a statement in this regard.
“There exists no bad blood between Governor Alia and the SGF. The governor has at different fora made this clear. Most recently was during the victory parade organised for the Governor by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, where he declared that the SGF remains the leader of the party in the state and that there is no issue between them as being speculated by people who don’t mean well for the state.
In Alia’s words, “Jealous elements, especially, the opposition who are waiting to see a fight between us should be ashamed of themselves. I am working hand in hand with my leader, Sen. George Akume”.
The statement disclosed that, “The governor regards the SGF as a respected leader of the party not just in the state, but the North Central and therefore, will no longer continue to keep quiet as some opportunistic elements desperately seek to pitch them against each other for their inordinate pecuniary gain.”
Meanwhile, the statement has warned opposition elements trying to foist a crack among the party’s leaders in the state by sponsoring malicious and vexatious press conferences to desist forthwith, as the Governor and the SGF’s relationship goes way back and will continue to wax stronger.
