Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State says his government is concerned about providing good governance to the people and not to a few individuals who consider themselves as bigwigs.
He stated this while briefing State House Correspondents shortly after meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa Abuja.
He said he was in the State House to brief the President on the affairs in Benue State, particularly the security and ecological situation in the state.
According to Governor Alia, the poor masses out there are the headquarters of democracy who elected him to serve them and not those who see themselves as power brokers in the state.
“I serve the people. I don’t know who the bigwigs are. We must be in this seat with our consciences, and this is why I take the masses seriously. Being a servant leader makes the magic work. I have been out there; I know where it hurts them most. They should take it easy on themselves and on the poor masses,” he said.
He further disclosed that his government is focusing on empowering the people of Benue State, particularly the youths.
He noted that over 10,000 youths are being trained in digital skills while youths are being sponsored by the state government to China for skills acquisition.
“We have sent a few youths to China to acquire skills to ensure that our young people are empowered and gainfully power. We do not have any reason to have food insecurity. We were slowed down by the insecurity that infested some LGAs but we have picked up. We are hiring 9,700 trained educated teachers by next week into our education sector,” Governor Alia disclosed.
On the security situation in Benue State, the governor said relative peace is being enjoyed across all the 23 local government areas, but that there are few skirmishes in three local governments.
He said the state government has also put in place measures ahead of the release of more water from Lagdo Dam in Cameroon to mitigate the impact of the expected flood, while appealing to the Federal Government for the dredging of the River Benue.
Governor Alia denied allegations that he is imposing candidates on the electorate ahead of the October 5 Local Government election in Benue State.
