A Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, has thrown his cap in the ring for the Benue governorship race on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The priest had an interactive session with the Benue community in Abuja to seek support for his ambition on Saturday.
During the meeting organised by the Alia Alliance, a group coordinating efforts to promote the priest’s gubernatorial ambition, he rolled out his seven-point agenda for the development of Benue.
Mr Alia, of the Catholic Diocese of Gboko, said his mission was to ensure that the government continued to prioritise the needs of residents and people of the state.
The aspirant listed his agenda to include enhancing education and healthcare, tackling corruption, and other malpractices.
“Social justice will be strictly adhered to in the context of ‘One Benue, One Brotherhood’;” he said, adding that he would also stop land grabbers in the state.
The aspirant pledged to create jobs and ensure massive industrial development through tax breaks and holidays to local businesses.
“We will provide a leadership that will restore our values, pride, and dignity,” Mr Alia said.
According to him, Benue has suffered from long years of ill-governance which has stunted its growth and development.
Mr Alia said that maladministration over the years had resulted in the underdevelopment, insecurity, and general hardship that the people of Benue had been subjected to.
He urged all Benue indigenes to rise up and join him to change the “ugly political narrative in the state.
“Benue is broken enough and it’s time to fix it. I joined partisan politics to salvage the state from collapse.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Alia Alliance, Peter Ashiekaa appealed to the Benue indigenes in Abuja to throw their weight behind what he called, the ‘Divine Project’.
He appealed for support to realise the aspirations of Mr Alia, whom he said offered the only hope for the emancipation of Benue people.
If his bid succeeds, Mr. Alia would have achieved a similar feat by Rev. Fr. Moses Adasu, a Catholic priest who was elected civilian governor of Benue in 1992.
