Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State has suspended the scheduled State House of Assembly delegate primaries aimed at producing the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the rerun election for Guma State Assembly over security challenges.
The delegate primaries were enable the party field its candidate to fill the vacuum created by the appointment of Dr. Ortese Yanmar, who earlier occupied the position but later appointed Commissioner for Health and Human Services by Governor Hyacinth Alia.
Addressing newsmen at the government house, Governor Alia who was accompanied by top security agencies lamented that the electoral process was hijacked by politicians who are not indigenes of the local government while party faithful were equally denied access to the venue.
“This day is expected to be a day the APC in the state to conduct the delegate primaries but unfortunately it has been marred by misconduct and this was posing some threats and insecurity on the Guma local government and it became imperative for me calm the irate youths and all the party stakeholders who were feeling so disenfranchised.
“In the last seven months and counting, we have experienced relative peace and efforts are being made by security agencies that peace returns to the state permanently. I wouldn’t want the efforts put in place to be in vain, I wouldn’t want anything that will trigger non-peace and insecurity on any corner not only in Guma LGA but the entire state and this is why it has become important why I suspend the delegate primaries.
“Sad enough, the party faithful came out to exercise their franchise, but were stopped at the gate and we saw people that do not belong to the local government at all, politicians from other local governments came and hijacked the process and even the officials that came in to do the election were locked outside and the youths were becoming quite emotional about the disenfranchisement and then I had to come in”.
Governor Alia urged all party faithfuls to assist him and all security agencies to keep peace in the state.
He lamented that Guma local government where the election was supposed to take place is the most vulnerable local government in the state” stressing that if he had not come in immediately to arrest the situation, it would have degenerated to a worrisome dimension.
He charged all security heads in the state to ensure that peace and calm returns to the local government like any other part of the state.
The governor expressed optimism that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party will wade into the matter to see that the right thing is done.
