By Ubong Ukpong, Abuja

Benue state All Progressives Congress (APC) caucus in the National Assembly on Thursday drew a battle line with their state governor, Rev. Father Hyacinth Alia over his leadership style, demanding that he reverts to the normal order of the party in administering the state.

The caucus at a press conference in Abuja, asked President Bola Tinubu, to call the governor to order to save the soul of the APC in the state.

Addressing the media, chairman of the caucus, Senator Titus Zam said these were their resolutions after the one-day retreat held on Thursday to consider the Renewed Hope agenda and matters arising in Benue State.

The press conference was themed, “An update on the dictatorial conduct and poor leadership by His Excellency, Rev Fr. Hyacinth Alia, the Governor of Benue State and the need for His excellency, President Ahmed Tinubu GCFR to call Governor Alia to order.”

The caucus said, “We the undersigned are members of the National Assembly Caucus elected on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform from Benue State.

“Having watched with apprehension the absence of democratic leadership in Benue State in the last six months exemplified by the arrogant and egocentric conduct of Governor Hyacinth Alia, we have decided to draw the attention of Mr President and other leaders of APC in Nigeria to seek their immediate intervention before the fortunes of APC in Benue State are totally destroyed.

“It is necessary to state from the onset that we have collectively and individually drawn the attention of the leader of the APC in Benue State, Sen. Dr. George Akume Secretary to the Government of the Federation who has on several occasions pleaded for patience from us in the anticipation of a possible change of attitude from His Excellency Governor Hyacinth Alia.

“Rather than change for the better, Governor Alia has become more emboldened and has continued to treat us and the party in general in the most disgusting disrespectful and disingenuous manner.

“Benue State APC, under the leadership of Sen. Dr George Akume as two terms former governor of Benue, three times senator, minister and now Secretary to the Government of the Federation had won elections and taken over power in 2015 after President Tinubu alongside other Nigerians formed the party in 2014.

“Unfortunately, former Governor Samuel Ortom betrayed the party and defected to the PDP, thus opening the chapter of a temporary setback for APC in Benue State.

“Not daunted, the Benue APC under the leadership of Senator Dr. George Akume undertook a purposeful re-engineering of the Benue political landscape to reclaim its stolen mandate and return the state to the mainstream progressive politics in Nigeria.

“It is the now stronger APC that attracted Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia to desperately seek election on the party’s platform.

“In retrospect, Fr. Alia only came to reap where he did not sow. In any case, you are well aware of the rejection his candidacy received from older members of the party.

“They felt aggrieved and resorted to stand by the advice of the leader of the party Sen. Dr. George Akume whose counsel has always been for the party to keep praying for Fr. Alia to succeed.

“In the first meeting of the stakeholders that was held in Government House, the chairman of the party Comrade Austine Agada publicly went on his knees, took all the blame even though there was no blame and apologized to the governor and party members requesting they put behind the State Assembly imbroglio and come together to save the party.

“In the meeting, the governor praised the leader of the party with promise to always work together so that Benue State and the party will enjoy democratic dividends.

“He also pledged that going forward he was going to involve the party and other critical stakeholders in sensitive decisions particularly in the nomination of commissioners and local government caretaker committees, a promise he unfortunately kept in breach.

“In appointing his commissioners, His Excellency again exercised a sole discretion without recourse to the normal tradition of requesting for nominations from the local governments and disregarded the zoning arrangements and permutations and went ahead to make his independent choices as he deemed soothing.

“Again the party did not oppose him but rather gave him support since it was his own State Executive and Security Council and needed people he could vouch for,” the caucus submitted.