A fresh political controversy has erupted in Benue State after former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Aondona Dajoh, accused Governor Hyacinth Alia of engineering his removal from office over his refusal to support an alleged plan to relocate the Tor Tiv Palace from Gboko to Ihugh, the governor’s hometown in Vandeikya Local Government Area.
Dajoh made the allegation on Saturday during activities marking his 50th birthday celebration at Akpagher Mbatiav in Gboko Local Government Area, where he addressed political associates, traditional leaders, family members and supporters.
The former Speaker claimed that Governor Alia sent him an official letter directing him, as Speaker, to support the relocation of the palace of the Tor Tiv, who is also Chairman of the Benue State Traditional Council. Dajoh said he rejected the proposal because of its cultural and political sensitivity.
“Governor Alia sent a letter to me directing that I should relocate the Tor Tiv Palace from Gboko to his community, Ihugh. I rejected the idea. I told him that he wanted to kill me. This was one of my biggest offences,” Dajoh alleged.
He further claimed that a close associate of the governor warned him that rejecting the proposal would mark the end of his tenure as Speaker. Dajoh also accused the governor of spending more than N200 million in an alleged failed attempt to remove the Chief Judge of Benue State, Justice Maurice Ikpambese.
The Benue State Government swiftly dismissed the allegations, describing them as false, baseless and politically motivated. In a statement, the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, challenged Dajoh to publish the alleged letter directing the relocation of the Tor Tiv Palace.
“The claim that Governor Hyacinth Alia wrote to him as Speaker asking him to relocate the Palace of the Tor Tiv from Gboko to Ihugh is entirely blatant falsehood, baseless and imaginary,” Kula said.
The government argued that any official communication from the executive to the legislature would have been formally presented before the House and could not have been privately handled by the Speaker. It also questioned the constitutional basis of the allegation, saying the House of Assembly had no authority to relocate the headquarters of a traditional institution.
Kula also demanded that Dajoh provide details of the alleged N200 million, including who received the money and how it was handled.
Dajoh was elected Speaker on June 5, 2023, but resigned in August 2025, shortly after the Assembly suspended four lawmakers over an alleged plot to impeach him.
