Benue: ‘Window dressing cannot mask failure’ – CESJET slams Onanuga for endorsing Alia

Benue State stakeholders have strongly criticized the Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Media and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, for publicly commending Governor Hyacinth Alia’s administration, describing his endorsement as a mockery of the President’s reform agenda.

In a press statement signed by Chief Bemgba Iortyom, Immediate Past Benue PDP State Publicity Secretary, and Amb. Adebayo Lion Ogorry, Executive Director of the Centre for Social Justice, Equity & Transparency (CESJET), the stakeholders dismissed claims that Governor Alia’s administration has delivered tangible developmental progress.

The statement highlighted that despite receiving billions of naira in post–fuel subsidy removal allocations—placing Benue among the highest beneficiaries nationally—the state remains one of the worst-performing in financial transparency and project execution.

“The few projects showcased to selected media executives in Makurdi amount to little more than window dressing and cannot justify claims of prudent financial management,” the statement read. It added that project execution under Governor Alia has often been marked by secrecy, disregard for due process, lack of competitive bidding, engagement of non-indigenous contractors, and issuance of contradictory figures by government agencies when disclosures are forced.

On security, the statement described the situation as “alarming,” noting persistent killings across the state, unattended IDP camps, and the governor’s failure to implement basic security directives personally issued by President Tinubu during his visit to Benue in June last year.

The stakeholders accused Mr. Onanuga of undermining the credibility of the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda by publicly endorsing what they described as incompetence and governance failure.

“We demand that he retract his statements and tender an unreserved apology to the people of Benue within 48 hours, failing which we shall pursue all lawful means of redress,” the statement warned.