The tighter three horse race for Benue guber

Fom Uche Nnorom, Makurdi

The Governorship election in Benue State is expected to be a fierce battle. It is said that when two elephants fight, it is the grass that usually suffers.

This will be the scenerio on Saturday 18th March, 2023 as the electorate troop out to the over 3000 polling units in 276 wards in the State.

The Presidential/National Assembly election threw up some issues which will go a long way to decide the Governorship polls. It is expected that the election will witness a larger turn out compared to the Presidential/ National Assembly election where out of 2.7 million registered voters in the State, 804,189 were accredited to vote. This is so, because, every politics is said to be local. The people are concerned about what affects them directly.

The battle for the State plum seat is expected to be a three horse race, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP and Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Engr. Titus Tyoapine Uba, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia of the All Progressives Congress, APC and Herman Iorwase Hembe of the Labour Party. LP. Incidentally, two of them, Uba and Alia hail from the same local government area(Vandeikya) while Hembe is from Konshisha. But it should be noted that all of them are from the same Jechira axis of the State where the second civilian Governor of the State, the late Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu who had a short spell also hailed from.

While Hembe and Uba may have an edge over Fr. Alia on grounds that they have garnered adeguate experience as Federal and State legislators to govern the State, the priests enjoy more popularity than the two. He has served as Church administrator in rural and urban communities where he worked closely with the people and impacted positively on their lives.

Also, while Hembe who has served as the House of Representatives member for Vandeikya/Konshisha Federal Constituency for more than three terms, has made appreciable achievements in his constituency which inspired him to contest as well as the belief that it should be the turn of the youth to govern the State, same cannot be said of the Speaker who cannot really boast of any achievement apart from his loyalty to the Governor Ortom who has enjoyed absolute, rancor-free cooperation from the ninth Assembly in the State.

Hembe’s projects are scattered in his constituency where Alia also comes from. He is expected to make a strong showing and outing there. The Labor Party, LP revolutionary movement seeping wide like a hurricane across many states of Nigeria could be kind and smile at him. In this race, he is seen as the dark horse and pretender who may spring a very big upset.

Uba and the PDP would have to struggle really hard to make an impact in this election. His emergence as the flagbearer of the party from an array of seasoned and popular aspirants from Jechira axis was stunning to many party faithfuls. Though his loyalty to Governor Ortom who stood stoutly behind him was the main factor. And he has pledged to sustain the legacies of the Governor especially in upholding the anti-open grazing law. His blue print tagged ‘Soil as Oil focuses on security and agriculture. He has also, promised to boost the agricultural sector through mechanized, commercial farming as a way of sustaining the status of the State as ‘Food Basket of the Nation’.

However,many political observers in the State see Uba as one who has been docile especially in discharge of his duty as number three citizen of the State. The House of Assembly which he presides over has remained inactive in discharging its responsibility as check of the Executive particularly in the area of non payment of salaries, pension and gratuities which is an albatross of the PDP government. On most occasion,the pensioners staged a protest to the Assembly to ventilate their grievances but rather than listen to them, the Uba led House chose to appropriate money and dine with the Executive.

So, based on the above, Benue people may not have confidence in Uba to lead the State to eldorado. But then, the PDP will give it last kick in this election.

Addressing newsmen recently, the State PDP chairman Isaac Mffo said the party will be vigilant during the Governorship election even as he dispelled rumors that the party candidate stepped down from the race.

“The rumour is a lie fabricated by agents of opposition political parties which are afraid of facing our candidate at the coming polls, and it should be disregarded in totality as our candidate is not just still in the race but far ahead in the lead and most favoured to win and succeed Governor Samuel Ortom at The People’s House, Makurdi come May 29th, 2023”, Mffo said confidently.

Hitherto, to the Gubernatorial election, Governor Samuel Ortom and the PDP held several meetings at Government House to appraise their npoor outing during the Presidential/ National Assembly election with a view to getting it right. For the party, it is fight to the finish as it would not want to relinquish power to the All Progressives Congress,APC.

For the All Progressives Congress, APC Governorship candidate Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, his road to this stage has been bumpy. He had to survive three (3) primaries and numerous court cases that followed it which culminated at the Apex court of the land, the Supreme Court. The clergy man support base in the State is a ‘revolutionary movement’ as the Benue people especially the ruralities see him as a face of change. They have confidence in him to develop the State. And this Father recoqnizes and clearly encapulsated in his 7 points development plan with main thrust on security, agriculture, health, job creation,economy etc.

He is highly favored to win the Guber election particularly as his party APC is still basking in the euphoria of their overwhelming victory at the Presidential/National Assembly election where they won two (2) Senate and 10 House of Representatives séats leaving only one Senator and House of Representatives seat to the ruling PDP.

5he APC realizes that their opponent cannot go to any length to get victory and raised an alarm of plot by PDP to manipulate the election.

In Press statement signed by APC Publicity Secretary Daniel Morgan Ihomun dated entitled PDP PLOT TO VENT THEIR ANGER AND FRUSTRATION ON BENUE PEOPLE, SEEK TO RIG GOVERNORSHIP AND STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS, the party claimed it gathered credible intelligence that the PDP, iplanned to visit mayhem on the good people of Benue state, members of the APC, perceived enemies and rig the forthcoming Governorship and State Assembly Election in Benue State.

He alleged that a secret meeting was held recently, in Government house where they planned to totally boycott BVAS, influence the reposting of INEC Staff (Polling Officers, Collation Officers and returning Officers), create violence in APC strongholds, engage in vote buying and use members of the recently established Community Volunteer Guards to instigated crisis in border communities, to whip up anti-Fulani and religious sentiments amongst the people for political gain.

The opposition party urged INEC to put modalities in place to check incidences of non-use of the BVAS during the Gubernatorial and State Assembly election in Benue State.