CONFUSION IN BENUE AS COUNCIL CHAIRMEN DRAW BATTLE LINE WITH GOVERNOR ALIA

Chairmen of the 23 Local Government Councils in Benue State have dared Governor Hyacinth Alia, a Catholic Priest, on their suspension from office.

Sequel to the Benue State House of Assembly’s recommendation to Governor Alia to suspend the 23 LG Chairmen to pave way for investigation into their financial activities, the Bureau of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs (BLGCA), on Friday, ordered the Council Chairmen to hand over power to the most senior staff in their various Councils.

But in a swift reaction at a press conference on Saturday, the Chairmen said they would neither comply with the instruction from the state lawmakers or the BLGCA.

Chairman of the Association of Local Governments Of Nigeria (ALGON), Benue State chapter, Mike Uba, who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, said they would not surrender to “illegality” as doing so would mean a disservice to the state.

He said they were duly elected into office alongside their Councillors on April 30, 2022, for a two-year tenure which would constitutional come to an end by April 30, 2024.

“We state without the slightest modicum of ambiguity or prevarication that we do not recognize our purported suspension from office, neither do we consider ourselves under any obligation to give heed to same or comply with any directive as emanates from it.

“Our position derives a fundamental base from the incontrovertible fact of our offices, being a creation of law as guaranteed under the supreme umbrella of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended in 1999) which recognizes the tier of government we function at as the third in a tripod made up of the Federal, State and Local.

“We were elected as Council Chairmen on 30th April, 2022 in the local council elections conducted by the Benue State Independent Electoral Commission (BSIEC) and sworn into office on 29th June, 2022.

“We were not appointed into office but were elected by the electorate of Benue State and vested with a mandate which is guaranteed under law, with the procedure for the administration of the Councils under our leadership clearly provided for under the Local Government Establishment Law of Benue State.

The Chairman added that as Chief Security Officers of the 23 local government areas of Benue and leaders in the state, they would at all times be willing to toe the path of peace, law and order, stressing, “we are Chairmen and will remain Chairmen. We will resume duty at our offices as usual and protect our mandate”.