By Amos Aar
FOR THE PEOPLE of Konshisha and its neighbouring communities, hope recently came alive again when the Benue Investment and Property Company (BIPC) test-ran the long-abandoned Benfruits Juice Factory, signalling the return of fruit processing in the state.
The excitement was loud and visible, as the factory successfully produced its first round of sweet, fresh, and additive-free juice made purely from Benue oranges.
But while the juice factory inspires a new wave of optimism for farmers and fruit traders, a major challenge threatens to cut short that joy — the deplorable state of the Awajir-Tse-Agberagba-Korinya road.
Constructed in the early 1990s, the road has since deteriorated beyond recognition, littered with deep gullies that pools rain water through which vehicles that dare to travel the route must ford or swim. The asphalt in much of the road has long been washed away, leaving behind deep potholes that make vehicular movement nearly impossible.
It is now a common sight to see vehicles stuck for hours, sometimes days, in muddy patches that have turned into small ponds during the rainy season.
Recently, a trailer loaded with fermented cassava, locally known as akpu, collapsed near Amuludu Village shortly after Shikaan in Mbaakpur. It remained there for almost a week, obstructing movement and leaving commuters stranded.
For travellers heading from Makurdi to Tse-Agberagba or Korinya, the journey is now a test of endurance. Many commuters are forced to alight at Aliade in Gwer East LGA to continue the rest of the journey via commercial motorcycles — a long and risky adventure stretching several kilometres. Many commercial drivers now avoid the route entirely, citing the dangers and the high cost of vehicle maintenance.
Governor Hyacinth Alia had, during a mega reception organised in his honour by his kinsmen of Vandeikya and Konshisha LGAs in April 2025, promised to reconstruct the broken road. However, months after that pronouncement, work is yet to commence on the project.
Residents like Terver Iorhemba from Gungul in Konshisha LGA say they are growing impatient. “We are happy about the juice factory, but how can we move oranges from our farms to Makurdi if the roads remain like this? The governor should remember his promise,” he said.
Another resident, David Chiahemba, from Abagi, shares the same concern. “This road has become a death trap. Accidents happen every week. The factory is a good development, but without roads, farmers will still suffer because we cannot get our produce to the factory,” he lamented.
The Benfruits Juice Factory, recently revived by the BIPC after over 20 years of dormancy, was test-run under the supervision of its Group Managing Director, Dr. Raymond Asemakaha. He explained that the factory now produces juice purely from Benue oranges and would process not only the fruit but also extract oil and convert chaff into organic fertilizer, ensuring zero waste.
According to Asemakaha, the factory will provide a ready market for orange farmers, create employment for locals, and end the practice of exporting raw fruits out of the state. “We want to ensure that no Benue orange leaves this state unprocessed,” he declared confidently.
Experts like Boager, the factory’s engineer, said it has the capacity to produce four metric tonnes of juice per hour and is equipped with a skilled technical team to ensure optimal operation.
For many Benue residents, the factory’s revival rekindles hope that the state’s long struggle with post-harvest fruit wastage may finally end. Thomas Torhide, a resident of Buruku LGA, believes that the new factory is a turning point.
“We have watched oranges rot away for years. If this factory continues, our farmers will no longer count losses,” he said.
Blessing Mile, another resident, described the initiative as “a blessing to Benue people,” while Terdoo Kparevfa expressed optimism that the venture would open new economic opportunities for youths across the state.
Despite these rays of hope, many fear that the poor road infrastructure, especially along the state’s orange belt, could frustrate the imagined prospects. Apart from the Awajir-Tse-Agberagba-Korinya stretch, other major routes such as the Ameradu-Ugbema and Gboko-Lessel-Ihugh roads are also in deplorable condition.
Although the Benue State Ministry of Works, Housing and Urban Development is yet to have a substantive commissioner, the Permanent Secretary, Engr. Donald Ikyaaza, assured that the government is aware of the road’s condition and would soon address it.
“By God’s grace, that road will be fixed soon,” he said, though he could not confirm whether the contract had been awarded.
For now, farmers and commuters continue to endure the hardship, praying that the government’s promise of rehabilitation will not remain a mere campaign statement. Until then, the bright dream of a vibrant fruit economy in Benue may remain tied to a road that is long overdue for attention.
When the Group Managing Director of the Benue Investment and Property Company Limited (BIPC), Dr. Raymond Asemakaha, was approached to speak on the historical background of the Benfruits Industry and provide clarifications on certain key issues, he claimed unavailability, and referred the reporter to the BIPC Head of Communication, Joyce Yongo.
However, after several postponements, Yongo, on Friday, November 7, 2025, told this reporter that she had been extremely busy. “Sorry about not being available; we have had a powerful delegation from Abuja for the last three days and today is the grand finale/MoU signing,” Yongo told National Record.
She did not, however, provide a new schedule or respond subsequently, even though she had been availed the basic questions and given the option to reply either via written chat or voice note at her convenience.
The reporter had sought answers to pressing issues, including what major challenges delayed the factory’s earlier take-off and how the current BIPC leadership intends to address them to ensure sustainability.
There were also inquiries about the company’s strategies and partnerships for consistent production and prevention of another shutdown.
Other questions focused on how BIPC plans to tackle transportation difficulties, against the backdrop of poor road infrastructure around the orange belt, and how the company intends to move fruits efficiently without compromising quality or incurring huge costs.
National Record also sought clarification on what informed the decision to site the factory at the Industrial Layout in Naka, which is relatively far from the major orange belts, and how that location aligns with BIPC’s long-term production and distribution goals.
Additionally, questions were raised on the broader vision for the juice factory in terms of job creation, market expansion, and contribution to Benue’s industrial growth.
On the choice of location, an official of the Alia administration, who preferred anonymity for lack of authorisation to speak on the matter, said: “The company requires enough water to function, that’s why it was located at the Industrial Layout, Naka.”
This explanation comes even as a Tomato Juice Factory is located at Wannune, a hilly area without a nearby river.
Some critics, including Dan-Morgan Ihomun, a former spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, accused Governor Alia of claiming projects executed by his predecessors.
“The truth is simple: Governor Alia didn’t build a juice factory; he inherited one. What’s happening now is a rebranding exercise, not a development milestone. It’s the same old facility built under an administration in 2011, now repainted and renamed to suit a desperate political narrative,” Ihomun posted on Facebook, as shared by Abraham C. Kyambe. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AwFo61rDi/
However, findings by National Record revealed that although the Juice Factory was initiated during the Akume administration, it never materialized, just like the Tomato Juice Factory at Wannune, Tarka LGA, which also failed to take off.
“It was paperwork — an elephant project — as it could not materialise throughout eight years,” a well-informed in the state’s civil service, who pleaded anonymity, told National Record.
Governor Alia himself lamented over the littering of abandoned “elephant projects” in his inaugural address at the IBB Square, Makurdi, on May 29, 2023, when he declared:
“Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, I am standing in this gap for our generation unborn, as I cannot accrue for them a deadweight debt burden associated with unwarranted social elephant projects.”
Meanwhile, the BIPC GMD, while commissioning the Gboko BIPC Bakery recently, restated the state-owned company’s commitment to reviving dormant state-owned enterprises, including the Wannune Tomato Factory.
For now, residents can only hope that the renewed efforts at industrial revival by the Alia administration will not be derailed by bureaucratic red tape, infrastructural neglect and sheer ineptitude or lack of political will.
