Benue APC Crisis Deepens as Akume’s Loyalists Reject Alia’s Campaign Council

The crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue State has deepened following the rejection of the state campaign council list released by the faction loyal to Governor Hyacinth Alia.
The Austin Agada-led faction has dissociated itself from the list, alleging that the governor’s camp included some stakeholders and National Assembly candidates loyal to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, without their consent.
The Alia-backed faction, led by Benjamin Omale, had earlier released the list of members of its campaign council.
However, the Director-General of the Benue Strategic Alliance for Tinubu, Chief Akange Audu, in a statement issued on Tuesday, said the group had no connection with the purported campaign structure.
Audu maintained that the individuals listed could not be presented as members of the alliance or associated with its political activities without authorisation.
He accused the Alia administration of sidelining established party leaders and structures despite their contributions to the APC’s victory in the 2023 general elections.
According to him, the alleged marginalisation has contributed to the divisions and disagreements within the party in the state.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Benue Strategic Alliance for Tinubu 2027 categorically dissociates itself from the said publication and disowns any claim or suggestion that the individuals mentioned therein are associated with, or constitute members of, the purported Alia campaign structure,” the statement read.
Audu, however, reaffirmed the group’s commitment to mobilising support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
He said the alliance would also support APC candidates for the National Assembly and the Benue State House of Assembly who emerge through the leadership direction recognised by Akume.
The group further expressed concern over the hardship confronting residents of the state under the Alia administration, insisting that the 2027 political process should provide an opportunity to address governance, accountability, party unity and the welfare of the people.
Describing the alliance as an independent political mobilisation platform, Audu warned against what he termed attempts to appropriate or misrepresent its identity, leadership and membership through unauthorised publications.
He urged APC executives at the state, local government and ward levels, as well as party stakeholders and members of the public, to disregard the disputed campaign council list.
The development underscores the lingering divisions within the Benue APC as political alignments begin to take shape ahead of the 2027 general elections.