Gov. Alia Hands Over Diverted Trailer Load Relief Materials To EFCC/ICPC

Governor Hyacinth Alia on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 handed over a trailer load of palliative items to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), with a charge to conduct a thorough investigation over suspicions of diversion.

The trailer conveying assorted relief materials meant for IDPs in the Kwande/Ushongo federal constituency was some few days ago caught offloading palliatives at a private residence around Kilometre 2 in Makurdiand was thereafter confiscated by th State Government.

Checks later indicated that the palliatives, which were loaded from the warehouse of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in Jos, found their way to a private residence under the directives of Hon. Terseer Ugbor, the representative of the Kwande/Ushongo federal constituency.
Governor Alia, who said he ordered for the trailer to be impounded at Government House, said he wanted to know why goods released from NEMA for distribution to IDPs in Kwande and Ushongo were being offloaded in a private residence in Makurdi.
The Governor said that preliminary investigations revealed that the goods were coming from NEMA were meant to be sponsored by the state government and lifted by the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
Alia, who also spoke to NEMA headquarters upon his return from the United Kingdom, where he attended MUTUK, expressed displeasure over the discoveries of some hidden facts regarding the matter.

                             
In a letter from NEMA headquarters addressed to the representative of the Kwande/Ushongo constituency, Terseer Ugbor, who actually lobbied for the materials, the agency specified that the state government should pay for the expenses of lifting the materials from Jos, and that the materials should be taken to the state by NEMA and handed over to SEMA.
Governor Alia, who discovered that some of the trucks conveying other materials such as mattresses were still missing, directed anti-graft agencies to liaise with a three-man committee from the state and conduct a thorough investigation to unravel more facts.
A statement by Sir Tersoo Kula, Chief Press Secretary to the Benue State Governor, stated that it was also discovered that the materials were to be distributed directly to the affected persons by officials from the Agency’s North Central Zonal Office in collaboration with the Benue State Emergency Management Agency team.
Towards this end, Governor Alia directed the Acting Executive Secretary of SEMA, Sir James Iorpuu, officers of the EFCC, and a few others to monitor the situation and ensure that due process was followed and that the materials are distributed to the rightful people.
The Governor thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for having Benue people at heart, and called on the National Assembly members to consider the conditions of vulnerable people in their state and ensure that they provide for their constituents whatever the federal government releases.
Speaking to Governor Alia on pone, the Director General of NEMA, thanked him for being vigilant and also promised to continue to collaborate with the state government to ensure the fair distribution of any materials coming from the federal government.