Politics in Benue is usually very interesting and this is more so because, often than not, it is always treated like a race for immediate applause instead of lasting legacies.
On that strength, every administration wants quick projects, loud ribbons cutting ceremonies and visible but ephemeral promises. However and sadly, real development takes time and this is because a house is not built by painting the walls before laying the foundation, but this is the situation we were witnessing in Benue before the coming of Governor Alia.
That is why the argument for Governor Hyacinth Alia in 2027 deserves serious consideration. An administration that deserves one term to figure out the real problem, lay the foundation, and another to build on the foundation laid.
Governor Alia took over the reins of Benue State at a really difficult moment, having been handed a state that was bleeding, a state was in hemorrhaging. Before the coming of Alia, Benue faced insecurity, unpaid obligations, weak institutions, youth unemployment and a struggling economy.
These problems are not going to disappear because Alia simply wishes them to disappear; they won’t disappear through one budget or one political season. They require patience, discipline and continuity in commitment.
Every administration’s first term should be judged by the problems it met, the foundation it creates. Pertinent questions should include – are public finances becoming more transparent? Are workers paid more regularly? Are schools receiving attention? Are hospitals better equipped? Are roads being repaired in a way that connects farmers to markets? Is security being handled with greater seriousness instead of media theatrics?
A farmer in Mbagwaza needs a motorable road to move cassava to either Ihugh, Lessel or Adikpo. A trader in Agila needs a safer route to Igumale, another trader from Gbajimba needs a good road to Makurdi to reach customers. A student in Vandeikya needs a functioning classroom, not another abandoned school project. A mother in Obi needs a health centre where basic treatment is available without travelling for hours.
Such changes may not produce instant excitement, but they create the structure on which lasting progress stands. This is the path the governor is on.
The first four years should therefore be about putting systems in place – restoring confidence in government, strengthening local administration, supporting agriculture, improving security and opening the economy to private investment.
The second term would then provide the time to expand these efforts, complete unfinished projects and turn early reforms into measurable results.
Benue cannot afford to keep starting afresh every four years because people are ambitious to prove a point that has no need to be proven.
Each new government should not spend its first year discovering what the previous one already knew. Continuity should not mean researching what is already known to the current administration. It should mean giving credible policies enough time to mature while holding the government accountable.
If Alia’s administration is laying the foundation, the people must ask one simple question – is the work moving Benue forward? And the answer on the lips of the people of Benue is Yes, Benue is moving from negative to positive, a fact even the opposition are not in denial.
Sir Tersoo Kula, mnipr
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor.
Tersoo Kula: Benue 2027 for Alia – One term to lay the foundation, another to build