Gov. Hyacinth Alia said on Saturday that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Sen. George Akume, was his leader and he did not have any problem with him.

Mr Alia disclosed this during his maiden media interaction with journalists at Government House in Makurdi.

There were speculations that there was a crisis between the two because of the Governor’s choice of chief of staff and SSG.

He said there was no single problem or crisis between him and the SGF, adding that Mr Akume is his leader and the leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the North Central.

“I don’t have any crisis with the SGF. He is my leader and the leader of the APC in the State and the Zone. People are creating their own perceived crisis where there is none.

“As a State, we made plans to welcome him home, but the entire North Central Zone, including the FCT, said they wanted to be part of it, so the plans are on the way,” he said.

The Governor also expressed shock that some people in the State accused him of choosing the leadership of the state assembly, explaining that he did not know anything about it.

“I’m amazed that you said I chose the leadership of the State Assembly. I did not. I’m a Catholic priest, and we are trained to be at least trusted.”

He said that since his assumption of office, he has started the renovation of the State House of Assembly and the State Secretariat, which were all in very bad shape.

The state secretariat was built during the administration of the late Gov. Aper Aku between 1979 and 1983.

Mr Alia said he discovered 2,500 ghost workers in the first phase of staff verification and payroll audits for teachers and staff of local governments, which has saved the State N1.2 billion.

He also said his administration was committed to peacebuilding and the resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the State.

He said that upon assumption of office, he had stopped all forms of illegal mining, and multiple taxes, among others, for an efficient and effective business environment.

Mr Alia disclosed that a few minutes after taking his oath of office, he froze all state accounts because people wanted to shortchange the state, adding that some of them are still frozen because he has yet to go through them.

(NAN)