• PDP candidate accuses governor of ‘chickening out’ on public ranching
• Says zoning cannot guarantee Alia’s re-election
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Benue State, Chief Michael Kaase Aondoakaa (SAN), has predicted the defeat of incumbent Governor Hyacinth Alia in the 2027 governorship election.
Aondoakaa, a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, attributed his prediction to what he described as the governor’s alleged poor performance, inaccessibility to the people and failure to adequately address insecurity in the state.
Speaking with journalists in Makurdi on Monday, the PDP candidate also accused Alia of failing to use the North-Central Security Summit to clearly state his position on public ranching and reassure Benue residents on the issue.
According to Aondoakaa, the governor had an opportunity at the security summit to publicly reject public ranching in the state but allegedly failed to do so.
He said, “I went to Arise and I explained the issue of ranching in a manner that anybody will reasonably agree with me.
“His Excellency got an opportunity at the Security Summit to say, ‘No ranching, no giving of land.’ Did he say it? Who is fooling who?
“I did it on national television, not to go to my little home in Lessel, somewhere in the dark and say I will not allow it.
“On that day of the Security Summit, I watched and heard his statements. I was just praying to God that this guy should save the state. Let him say no, I will not allow public ranching in the state. He didn’t. He chickened out.”
Aondoakaa argued that if the governor opposed public ranching, he should communicate his position clearly in the official language and explain how such a policy would operate within the framework of the Constitution and existing laws.
He noted that while freedom of movement and the right to conduct business were constitutionally protected, individuals and businesses operating in the state must comply with municipal, state and federal laws.
The PDP candidate also cited quarantine regulations governing cattle movement, vaccination requirements and recognised community customs as factors that should guide livestock movement.
On zoning, Aondoakaa dismissed suggestions that the arrangement would automatically work in Governor Alia’s favour in 2027.
“Which zoning are you talking about? We are not talking about zoning here. Even the governorship that Governor Alia contested, people in Idoma land contested. Even people from our zone contested. He won the election that time,” he said.
“The four years that he got have elapsed. So which zoning are you talking about?”
Aondoakaa further argued that the Constitution guarantees a governor a four-year tenure, while a second term is dependent on the electorate.
“It is not a law that a governor must serve eight years. The law does not give a governor eight years; it gives a governor four years. The other four years is what the people give you,” he said.
He accused the Alia administration of failing to do enough to address insecurity, alleging that Benue residents were still being killed and displaced.
“The people are suffering over security issues; their security is not guaranteed. People are murdered every day,” he said.
Aondoakaa also maintained that incumbency would not guarantee Alia victory, arguing that accessibility to the people would be a major factor in the 2027 election.
“A sitting governor will lose the election this time because the other sitting governors worked for the people to endear themselves to the community, and they carried the people along,” he said.
“First, accessibility is important. People in Benue value access. If you are a governor and you cannot be accessed, who will vote you again?
“Even if you don’t give them anything, but the fact that if they come to you, and you welcome them, you talk to them, they feel at home. So we cannot go creating islands.”
The PDP candidate pledged that if elected governor, he would prioritise accessibility and maintain regular contact with residents across the state.
“I will be an accessible governor, and nobody who is not accessible at the magnitude at which it is now will be allowed to come back to the state,” Aondoakaa said.
