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A damning budget performance report has exposed a shocking disparity in Benue State’s security spending under Governor Hyacinth Alia. Between January and March 2026, the state government released and spent just N111.06 million on security-related matters. This represents a mere 0.3% of the N41.85 billion approved for security votes and operations in the 2026 fiscal year.
The approved budget had allocated N40 billion specifically for security votes and operations, with an additional N1.85 billion for security services, bringing the total security allocation to N41.85 billion. Yet, according to the first-quarter budget performance review, only a tiny fraction of these funds was actually utilized amid a wave of escalating violence across several local government areas in the state.
The report raises serious concerns about the administration’s spending priorities at a time when armed attacks, banditry, and farmer-herder clashes continue to claim lives and threaten the state’s status as Nigeria’s “food basket.” The low expenditure on security is particularly striking when compared to other areas of spending. For context, the N3.35 billion released for the running costs of the Benue State Government House and the House of Assembly during the same period far exceeded what was spent on security. In fact, security spending accounted for only 3.3% of that amount.
This minimal investment in security comes despite the establishment of the Benue State Bureau of Homeland Security by Governor Alia in July 2024. The agency, tasked with coordinating security operations and liaising with security agencies, reportedly recorded no releases for personnel, overhead, or capital expenditure during the first quarter of 2026, even though it has a total budgetary allocation of N2.15 billion for the year.
The human cost of this apparent underfunding is stark. Between January and March 2026, dozens of residents were reportedly killed in various attacks. Notable incidents include:
– Armed men blocking the Adoka-Odugbo Road at Edikwu-Okpogo village, where Okoh was killed and a woman, Aneh Sunday, sustained severe injuries.
– The ambush killing of a farmer along the Agagbe-Abian Road on 27 January.
– The killing of an engine operator in Ikobi community on 30 January.
– A major attack on 3 February in Abande and Anwase communities in Turan District, where at least 17 people, including a police officer, were killed.
– The 5 March attack in Mbaav community (Mbadura Council Ward) and Mbachoon community (Yaav Council Ward), which claimed 16 lives.
– Multiple attacks in Kwande, Gwer West, Ohimini, and Agatu local government areas, with several fatalities and injuries reported on rice farms, villages, and communities.
These incidents have worsened humanitarian conditions in affected areas and further threatened food production and livelihoods in a state already grappling with recurring violence.
On the broader financial front, the Benue State Government recorded a total revenue of N127.18 billion in the first quarter. This included N57.68 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), N11.33 billion in internally generated revenue, N14.42 billion from grants and aid, and N43.75 billion in opening balances carried over from 2025. Total expenditure for the period stood at N82.28 billion, with N34.48 billion spent on personnel costs, N22.38 billion on other recurrent expenditures, and N25.42 billion on capital projects.
While the state has significant resources at its disposal, the glaring under-spending on security has sparked outrage and questions about the administration’s commitment to protecting lives and property. Security votes and allocations by state governments are typically meant to support logistics, intelligence gathering, fuel supply, vehicles, emergency operations, and stipends for local vigilante groups—critical areas that appear to have been largely neglected in Benue during this period.
As attacks persist and communities live in fear, many residents and analysts are calling for stronger state-backed security coordination and intervention. The first-quarter budget performance report serves as a wake-up call for Governor Alia’s administration to urgently realign its spending priorities with the security realities on the ground if Benue is to stem the tide of violence and safeguard its agricultural future.
Source: Premium Times and first-quarter budget performance report of Benue State Government.
