Fresh controversy has emerged in Benue State following allegations by former Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Mr. Aondona Dajoh, that Governor Hyacinth Alia masterminded his removal from office after he declined to support an alleged proposal to move the Palace of the Chairman of the Benue Traditional Council from Gboko to Ihugh, the governor’s hometown in Vandeikya Local Government Area.
Dajoh made the allegations on Saturday during activities marking his 50th birthday at Akpagher Mbatiav in Gboko LGA. The event was attended by political associates, traditional rulers, family members and supporters.
The former Speaker claimed that Governor Alia conveyed the proposal to him through an official letter and that his refusal to endorse the plan contributed to his eventual removal from office.
“Governor Alia sent a letter to me directing that I should relocate the Tor Tiv Palace from Gboko to his community, Ihugh. I rejected the idea. I told him that he wanted to kill me. This was one of my biggest offences,” Dajoh claimed.
He further alleged that his stance against the proposed relocation drew opposition from influential individuals within the governor’s circle.
“When I rejected the idea of moving the Tor Tiv Palace to the governor’s hometown, one of the two most powerful men around Governor Alia (name withheld) told me that if I rejected the proposal, I should consider that as the end of my speakership,” he alleged.
Dajoh also accused Governor Alia of spending more than N200 million in an unsuccessful attempt to remove the Chief Judge of Benue State, Justice Maurice Ikpambese.
The former Speaker additionally criticised the governor over what he described as actions that had undermined the interests of the Jemgbagh people. He recalled remarks allegedly made by Alia during the 2023 election campaign.
“It was on this soil that Alia stood and said anybody who beats the Jemgbagh people will be inflicted with madness. But Alia has beaten Tor Jemgbagh, Ter Gboko, taken the Jemgbagh Speaker to another zone, beaten their sons,” Dajoh said.
Responding to the allegations, the Benue State Government dismissed them as false and politically motivated, describing them as a combination of conspiracy theories, baseless claims and bitterness.
In a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Tersoo Kula, the government challenged Dajoh to present evidence of the alleged letter directing the relocation of the Tor Tiv Palace.
“The claim that Governor Hyacinth Alia wrote to him as Speaker asking him to relocate the Palace of the Tor Tiv from Gboko to Ihugh is entirely blatant falsehood, baseless and imaginary,” Kula said.
The government maintained that any formal communication from the Executive to the House of Assembly would have been officially presented before lawmakers and could not have been privately handled by the Speaker alone.
“We challenge Dajoh to make public the letter he alleged the Governor sent to him to relocate the Tor Tiv Palace to Ihugh,” the statement added.
Kula also questioned the legal basis of the allegation, arguing that the Benue State House of Assembly does not possess the constitutional authority to relocate the headquarters of a traditional institution such as the Tor Tiv Palace.
The government further demanded clarification regarding Dajoh’s allegation that N200 million was used in an attempt to remove the Chief Judge.
“Dajoh now owes Benue people a clear explanation on where he took the money to, and who were the beneficiaries of the ‘bribe’ money. The people of Benue deserve facts, not fiction; evidence, not emotions; and accountability, not political theatre,” the statement said.
The governor’s aide also defended the administration’s handling of the Wurukum–Renewed Hope Estate road project, insisting that the contract was awarded in line with federal requirements and was being executed in a transparent manner.
