Benue Tribunal Appeal Verdict: Alia’s Camp Banking on #3 Billion Victory 

There is an ongoing palpable political uncertainty in Benue following a leaked report suggesting that Governor Hyacinth Alia has allegedly boasted in private about securing a favorable judgment at the Local Government Election Appeal Tribunal with a ₦3 billion war chest.

The leak, which emerged from sources close to Government House, claims that members of the Governor’s inner circle have already begun celebrating what they consider a done deal — with confidence that tribunal outcomes across the 23 Local Government Areas have been “taken care of.”

The source further alleged that the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Tersoo Kula, was overheard gloating about the development in hushed conversations among the governor’s inner circle. Kula was reportedly citing inside assurances that “not even a councillor from the Agada camp would survive” — a remark that has raised eyebrows and prompted urgent calls for transparency and accountability in the tribunal process.

The growing whispers of judicial compromise and political maneuvering have cast a dark cloud over what should be a transparent, impartial legal process. Critics argue that such speculative leaks, whether true or not, erode public trust in democratic institutions and send dangerous signals about the health of electoral justice in Nigeria, and undermines the integrity of the judiciary and disenfranchises citizens who are hoping for a fair outcome.”

Already, rumblings from within the APC suggest internal unease. Party members aligned with the Akume/Agada axis express fears that the tribunal verdicts may be used to cement Alia’s total control of the local government structures, marginalizing even loyal party stalwarts in the process. Some fear this could deepen the existing rift within the party and push grassroots stakeholders further into opposition alliances.