By Amos Aar
A QUARREL has erupted between Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State and Hon. Terseer Ugbor who represents Kwande/Ushongo federal constituency over palliatives and relief materials donated by the federal government through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the constituency.
Hon. Ugbor made a claim in a statement posted on his Facebook wall where he alleged that Governor Alia had on September 11, 2024 seized “one of the truck loads” of palliatives while offloading in a Makurdi residence and diverted it to Government House, Makurdi. The palliatives, according to the federal legislator, included 578 bags each of rice and garri, 578 mosquito nets, 578 mattresses, 578 pieces of wax print, 58 cartons of vegetable oil, 58 cartons of seasoning cubes and 58 cartons of tomato paste.
Ugbor also claimed that NEMA and security agencies were fully aware of every arrangement about the palliatives’ movement or conveyance process and intended distribution, adding that he made efforts severally through phone calls and text messages to explain things to Governor Alia whom he alleged ignored him.
Ugbor statement on Facebook reads: “I woke up to the news that palliatives and relief materials facilitated by my office for the people of Kwande/Ushongo have become a source of controversy, thus necessitating my clarification.
“These are the facts.
“1. It is true that we transported relief materials to Benue state from Jos, in collaboration with NEMA.
“2. It is true that we decided to offload at Makurdi in agreement with NEMA pending a fixed date for distribution at Jato Aka when all logistics and proper planning will have been completed for effective distribution to the targeted beneficiaries.
“3. It is true that the Benue State Government seized one of the truck loads of palliatives and diverted to the government house under the pretext that we planned to divert the materials.
“4. It is a fact that not a single item is missing or diverted under my watch as this is not the first-time palliatives have been delivered in Makurdi, the state capital, before disbursement to the local governments.
“5. It is a fact that we have made submissions to DSS, police and the state government officials about these federal government palliatives and the logic behind our decisions.
“6. It is also a fact that these are not SEMA palliatives, and no law says we must inform SEMA or the state government before bringing Federal Government palliatives into Benue. The requirement is to collaborate with SEMA for distribution.
“Recall that I have severally informed the IDPs of these expected palliatives during my visits to them, which has taken over 6 months of constant writing and follow-up to achieve.
“These relief materials include 578 bags of rice, 578 bags of garri, 578 mosquito nets, 578 mattresses, 578 pieces of wax print, 58 cartons of vegetable oil, 58 cartons of seasoning cubes and 58 cartons of tomato paste.
“If I recall, this will be the highest relief materials that would ever be delivered to IDPs in Kwande, and I will never relent in my efforts to attract even more dividends to our people.
“All my efforts through calls and messages to the governor to personally explain and assure him of my good intentions were ignored, but I sincerely hope the issue can be resolved as soon as possible to enable us to continue the process of facilitating these relief materials to the peaceful and long-suffering people of Kwande/Ushongo.”
Speaking on the matter, Governor Alia, who broke the news five days after the seizure of the palliatives, explained that he acted based on a tipoff that NEMA palliatives sent to the state from the federal government were being diverted to a private residence at Kilometer 2, along Makurdi-Gboko road and he directed his (Chief Security Officer (CSO) to dispatch a team of police personnel to the premises together with the Executive Secretary, State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to know where the palliatives left, who were the supposed beneficiaries and who diverted it.
Alia, who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Tersoo Kula, at a press briefing held at Government House , Makurdi on Monday, further explained that when the SEMA boss and the security agents arrived the scene, they saw that the palliatives were actually being offloaded at the residence under the watch of Francis Ajai, an aide to Hon Ugbor, and some of his colleague aides.
Further inquiries, the governor’s spokesperson said, revealed that the palliatives meant for the state were released at the North Central office of NEMA in Jos to Francis Ajai whose name appeared on the manifest.
Kula further revealed that the National Assembly member and his team refused to follow due process by registering the goods at SEMA as it ought to be done but rather diverted it to a wrong destination, making the whole thing suspicious.
Kula also claimed that the truck was brought to Government House for the governor to monitor and know who gave the directive and for such a person to reclaim it after giving explanations.
He said the governor is surprised that 5 days after the incident, nobody, including Ugbor, or any of his aides approached him to claim responsibility but instead, rushed to the media to tell lies about it.
