Fact-checking Benson Abounu: Did Enone hold Benue South Senate seat for 25 Years?

A claim by former Deputy Governor of Benue State, Benson Abounu, and other proponents of the current zoning argument that Enone has held the Benue South senatorial seat for about 25 years does not align with the documented tenure of senators from the area.

The claim is being used in the ongoing debate over whether the Benue South Senate seat should remain with Enone — comprising Ado, Ogbadibo and Okpokwu — or rotate to other parts of the district ahead of the 2027 election.

A review of available records shows that Enone has not held the seat continuously or cumulatively for 25 years in the manner suggested.

The historical record is more complicated.

Senator Ameh Ebute represented Benue South in the Third Republic. Records show that Ebute’s Third Republic Senate tenure ran from December 5, 1992, to November 17, 1993, a period of less than one year. 

Senator Godwin Idoko Okpe, from Okpokwu, also represented the district during the Second Republic, although his tenure was interrupted by the 1983 military coup. Historical accounts place him among the senators who represented the district during that period. 

The most substantial uninterrupted tenure, however, came from David Mark, who represented Benue South from 1999 to 2019 — exactly 20 years. Contemporary reports from Punch, Vanguard and ThisDay all describe Mark’s representation as a 20-year tenure. 

Where the argument becomes important

The current zoning debate itself appears to acknowledge that different parts of Benue South have produced senators at different times.

A recent communiqué attributed to the Benue South Strategic Group, with Abounu among the stakeholders, argued that Apa/Agatu and Oju/Obi should now be considered for the Senate seat, saying other constituencies had historically dominated the position. 

That position is different from simply stating that Enone has occupied the seat for 25 years.

In fact, records show that Abba Moro, who succeeded David Mark in 2019, is from Ugbokolo in Okpokwu, one of the local government areas identified with Enone. Moro won the seat in 2019 and retained it in 2023. 

Therefore, if the argument is that Enone has accumulated 25 years of senatorial representation, the proponents need to show the precise years being counted and which senators are being classified as Enone representatives.

Verdict

The claim that Enone has held the Benue South Senate seat for 25 years is misleading unless its proponents provide a clearly defined historical zoning formula and the individual tenures being counted.

What is firmly established is that David Mark alone represented Benue South for 20 years, from 1999 to 2019.