Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, has dismissed a petition written against him by the 2023 All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, governorship candidate, Joseph Waya, to Pope Leo XIV, describing it as baseless and driven by personal bitterness.
Waya, in a petition submitted through the Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria, Archbishop Michael Francis Crotty, alleged that Governor Alia had, through his conduct in office, brought the Catholic Church in Nigeria into disrepute.
Reacting in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, on Saturday, Alia said the petition lacked credibility and was an attempt to mislead the public and drag the Church into partisan politics.
“The petition, measured from all perimeters, is built on gossip and personal bitterness, and needs not be given any response,” the statement read.
The governor maintained that claims of financial misconduct were unfounded, noting that Waya relied on reports from an online blog rather than official records such as Auditor-General’s reports, budget documents, or findings by anti-corruption agencies.
On allegations of lack of projects, Alia said his administration had executed several development initiatives, including ongoing road construction across Makurdi, Gboko, Otukpo, and other local governments, regular payment of salaries and pensions, rehabilitation of hospitals, and renovation of schools. He also cited partnerships with international development agencies such as UNIDO, GIZ, and AFC to industrialize the state.
The statement further described Waya’s claims of violence, dismantling of the anti-open grazing law, and conflict with the Catholic Church as misleading and unsubstantiated, stressing that no security or Church authority had corroborated such allegations.
It added that the petition was a reflection of Waya’s frustration after losing the 2023 governorship election and an attempt to seek relevance.
“The Catholic Church remains a moral force and cannot be used as a pawn in the hands of a political trickster like Waya,” the governor’s spokesman said.
