Reports circulating on Saturday, 25 September 2026, allege that the Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Alfred Emberga, a close ally of Governor Hyacinth Alia, ordered his supporters to publicly burn with petrol campaign T-shirts bearing the image of Chief Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN, the PDP governorship aspirant for 2027. The incident is said to have taken place on Friday, 24 September.
The claim was first highlighted by PDP Prosperity Network TV News. The group described the alleged act as a threat to democracy and a low point for an arm of government meant to serve as the last hope of the people. It pointed to Section 92 of the Electoral Act 2022 (as amended), which prohibits the destruction, defacing or removal of campaign materials and the intimidation of political opponents, as well as Section 249 of the Penal Code Law of Benue State, which criminalises mischief by fire and the wilful destruction of property.
In a statement, the PDP Prosperity Network, comprising the State EXCO, three zonal coordinators and 23 LGA coordinators, affirmed that Chief Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN, remains their choice for 2027. The network argued that Benue people voted for the current government in 2023 in the hope of security, payment of salaries, the return of internally displaced persons and food security, yet what is being witnessed today, in their view, amounts to intimidation rather than problem-solving. Burning a T-shirt because it carries MKA’s face, they said, is an attack on the freedom of the Benue voter.
The group insisted that no amount of intimidation would stop the 2027 movement and called on the Commissioner of Police, the Department of State Services and peace-loving Benue elders to investigate the alleged incident and warn political actors to allow a level playing ground. “Benue deserves better than petrol and fire politics,” the statement concluded.
As of the time of writing, the allegation remains unverified by independent sources, and there has been no public response from the Speaker or the state government.
