Hyacinth Alia is the Governor of Benue State and one of the few Catholic priests ever elected to high office in Nigeria. He won the APC’s ticket in 2022 against established politicians and took office in 2023. His tenure has been dominated by violence in rural Benue and by disputes within the state APC.12

Early life and priesthood

Alia was born on 15 May 1966 in Vandeikya. He trained at seminaries in Makurdi and Jos and was ordained a priest in 1990. He later studied in the United States, at Fordham University and at Duquesne University, where he took a doctorate in biomedical ethics.1 He was well known in Benue for his pastoral and charity work before entering politics.

The 2023 election

Alia won the APC governorship primary in 2022, beating veteran politicians including former Senator Barnabas Gemade and former Attorney-General Michael Aondoakaa.3 The Catholic Church suspended him from priestly ministry for entering partisan politics. In March 2023 he was elected governor, succeeding Samuel Ortom of the PDP.14

Governor (2023–present)

His government says it has prioritised the regular payment of salaries and pensions and has built roads, flyovers and underpasses in Makurdi and Gboko, and in 2025 it secured European Investment Bank financing for rural roads.1

Security remains the biggest problem. Attacks on farming communities, which state officials blame on armed herders, continued throughout his tenure. In the deadliest, in Yelwata on the night of 14 June 2025, the state government put the death toll at 59; media reports citing lists of victims said more than 100 people were killed. Human Rights Watch said no one had been prosecuted for earlier attacks that year. President Tinubu visited the state days later.56 Alia has set up a state security outfit and called for state police.1

His relationship with the APC’s national leaders from Benue, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, became strained during his first term.2

2027

In May 2026 Alia defeated challengers in the APC governorship primary to win the party’s ticket for a second term; a losing aspirant disputed the process.27

References

  1. Hyacinth Alia. Wikipedia, accessed October 2026. ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩ ↩

  2. APC primaries: Alia, Akume loyalists take battle to Abuja. The Guardian Nigeria, May 2026. ↩ ↩ ↩

  3. Suspended Catholic priest beats Gemade, Aondoakaa to clinch APC guber ticket in Benue. TheCable, 2022. ↩

  4. Guber polls: Catholic priest wins in Benue, Zulum reelected in Borno. ICIR, March 2023. ↩

  5. Nigeria: Prioritize security amid rising violence in Benue State. Human Rights Watch, 18 June 2025. ↩

  6. President Tinubu arrives in Benue over killings. Channels Television, 18 June 2025. ↩

  7. Alia defeats challengers Orbunde and Kuraun in Benue APC governorship primary. AllAfrica, May 2026. ↩