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By Tracy Moses
The Yongo-Tiev Community Development Association (YTCDA), a socio-cultural group in Benue State, has faulted the allegation of N345.3 billion fraud leveled against Governor Hyacinth Alia by Joseph Waya, a 2023 governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), describing it as unfounded and misleading.
The association, while distancing itself from Waya, its kinsman, insisted that the accusations were “illogical fabrications” intended to malign the governor’s reputation.
In a petition dated September 1, 2025, and addressed to Pope Leo XIV through the Apostolic Nunciature in Abuja, Waya accused Governor Alia of corruption, poor performance, and allegedly dragging the Catholic Church into disrepute. He also claimed the governor spent over N345.3 billion on questionable contracts without the approval of the State Executive Council (SEC).
But addressing a press conference in Makurdi, YTCDA President, Ankulugh Jita, explained that available financial records of the state government made nonsense of Waya’s allegations.
Speaking on his behalf, Dr. Kpough Tule, former Deputy Director of Currency at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and current Chairman of Novus Microfinance Bank, presented figures contradicting Waya’s claims.
According to Tule, between May and December 2023, Benue received N87.039 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). In 2024, the state received N135.67 billion alongside N26 billion in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). For 2025, projections put FAAC receipts at N142.45 billion and IGR at N28.6 billion.
He explained that the combined receipts from May 2023 to December 2025 amounted to about N419.759 billion. “If Mr. Waya insists that Governor Alia mismanaged N345 billion, one wonders where he got his figures from. The numbers simply don’t tally,” Tule noted.
Describing the petition as “a distraction,” he said: “Benue people chose a priest-governor because of his integrity and character. Halfway into his tenure, Alia is making visible progress. Waya’s petition has no merit and should be dismissed for what it is—frivolous and politically motivated.”
Tule further argued that the petition was built on “falsehoods and personal grievances” while ignoring the state’s ongoing financial reforms, infrastructure projects, and Alia’s upright record within the Catholic Church.
“The document provides no evidence of corruption. It is merely a political tool aimed at misleading the Vatican and denting the image of a governor who has dedicated himself to serving the people,” he stressed.
The group also criticized Waya for neglecting his own Mbayongo-Tiev community, which they said remains without schools, hospitals, boreholes, roads, electricity, or communication facilities despite his wealth.
They recalled that only recently Governor Alia visited Mbayongo-Tiev during a burial ceremony, where he observed the community’s neglect and promised to construct major roads and deliver infrastructure. According to the group, this commitment may have unsettled Waya, prompting his attack.
“The people of Mbayongo-Tiev regard this petition as an assault not just on Governor Alia but on the entire community,” Tule declared. “We categorically dissociate ourselves from Mr. Waya’s actions. His grievances are personal and do not reflect the views of our people.”