Buhari has done so much for Nigeria, says Benue gov-elect

Hyacinth Alia, Benue governor-elect, says President Muhammadu Buhari has done so much for Nigeria.

Speaking with state house correspondents after a courtesy visit to the president on Wednesday, Alia commended Buhari for not interfering with the general election.

“This is a solidarity visit and the president leaves office in a matter of months. I came to wish him well. He has done so much for the nation. Remember, I am a Catholic priest and I prayed for all of us too and shared the blessings with him too,” the governor-elect said.

Alia, a reverend father, was elected Benue governor after polling 473,933 votes to defeat Titus Uba, the candidate of the Peoples Democracy Party (PDP), who polled 223,913 votes.

On his plans as governor, Alia promised to revamp Benue civil service which, according to him, is currently in intensive care unit (ICU).

The reverend father said despite its potentials, the state is faced with many challenges.

Alia added that his administration would hit the ground running immediately after his swearing in on May 29 to make life better for residents of the state.

“Benue is very capable of feeding the whole nation, so we are not just the food basket of the nation by name and I am hoping that we will up our game in agriculture and take care of the rest as well,” he said.

“It is sad that the life of civil service in the state is near collapse. It’s in the ICU. So I just need to get in there and infuse life in it and keep it moving.

“We have a lot of backlog of unpaid salaries, pensions and gratuities. So, already I got much on the desk to keep a good focus on and I remain hopeful that I am going to do just that.”

When asked if he would probe Samuel Ortom, the incumbent governor, he said: “I haven’t looked at the books, so I wouldn’t want to be quite preemptive. Once I’m sworn in, I know that what the good people of Benue want is progress and development.”