Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, has extended his agricultural revolution to the media community, distributing improved oil palm seedlings to journalists in Makurdi while promising to renovate the dilapidated NUJ Secretariat.
Speaking at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Congress on Monday, Alia described the initiative as more than a welfare gesture, but a strategic move to make journalists stakeholders in the State’s economic transformation.
“These are not ordinary seedlings,” the Governor declared. “Every palm tree you plant will create jobs, feed industries, and build wealth for families. As journalists, your pen and your farms will both contribute to rewriting the Benue story.”
The governor also announced plans to offset the NUJ’s ₦12 million backlog of dues to its national body, provide a utility bus, and address the long-standing agitation for weigh-in allowances once a new Commissioner for Information is appointed.
Observers noted that the gesture, beyond its agricultural value, reflects an attempt by the Alia administration to deepen ties with the press while positioning agriculture as Benue’s pathway to industrialisation.
NUJ State Council Chairman, Comrade Bemdoo Ugber, hailed the palm distribution as a “wealth-planting initiative” that gives journalists a stake in the state’s development drive. He, however, renewed calls for sustained government support, including official vehicles and rehabilitation of the union’s facilities.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Agweye Agbenu, disclosed that the government plans to plant six million hybrid palms across the state, a move he said would reduce dependence on federal allocations and make Benue a reference point in agricultural diversification.
