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Benue State has “departed Egypt” and must resist any attempt to return to “bondage,” the governor’s office said on Monday, using biblical imagery to rally support for the administration as it battles criticism over governance and decaying infrastructure.
“Benue has departed Egypt. We must resist being persuaded to return to bondage,” Tersoo Kula, chief press secretary to Governor Hyacinth Alia, said in a statement that framed the administration’s three-year record as a transformative break from past stagnation.
The statement, issued at the start of the working week, acknowledged that “entrenched interests who were both comfortable and indifferent with periods of stagnation, decay, and institutional collapse” had grown uncomfortable with the emergence of a “new Benue” founded on transparency, accountability and people-centred governance.
Kula said desperate attempts were being made daily through “falsehoods, misinformation, and propaganda” to distract the government and undermine progress, but insisted such tactics should not surprise the people of the state.
“Our joy remains that our people are witnesses to reality,” he said, pointing to what he described as unprecedented interventions in road networks spanning the state’s three geopolitical zones.
The government claimed massive investments in education through the renovation and construction of schools, with over 9,000 personnel recruited to revive the system.
It also cited improvements in healthcare infrastructure, housing, agriculture, security, youth employment, civil service reforms and the revival of moribund state-owned enterprises.
“These are not promises; they are tangible achievements visible in our communities,” Kula said.
The statement came as the governor’s office responded to what it described as public concerns over decaying infrastructure in different sectors across the state.
“A reasonable number of years of neglect had weakened institutions, eroded public confidence, and slowed development,” Kula said, acknowledging the scale of challenges inherited by the administration, which took office three years ago.
The government called on Benue residents “irrespective of political, ethnic, or religious affiliation” to remain steadfast in supporting the administration and to reject “divisive narratives.”
History had shown that great societies were built by citizens who chose “hope over despair, truth over falsehood, and progress over regression,” the government said.
Benue, a key agricultural state in Nigeria’s North-Central region, has faced significant security challenges in recent years, including conflicts between farmers and herders, as well as attacks by armed groups.
Alia, a Catholic priest, was elected governor in 2023 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, defeating the incumbent Samuel Ortom of the Peoples Democratic Party.
BENUE HAS LEFT EGYPT; WE MUST RESIST TEMPTATIONS TO LOOK BACK.
Monday, August 3, 2026
We wish to express our profound appreciation to the dear people of Benue State for their unwavering support, resilience, and prayers as we continue on the path of rewriting the factual version… pic.twitter.com/9ol7lnY5Ek
— Benue State Government (@benuestategovt) August 3, 2026
