There have been rising concerns on whether Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State has truly banned the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, from entering Benue State following a recent killing of over 200 residents by criminal herders.

Reacting to the recent killing, Mr. Peter Obi had released another press statement which has been widely criticized by many as unnecessary politicization of the age-long security menace in Benue State even though Governor Hyacinth Alia also condemned the killing and categorized it unnecessary wasting of life.

Following this trend, there is a speculation that Governor Hyacinth Alia has banned Mr. Peter Obi from entering Benue State. 

Actually, some time in (mid) April 2025, Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State ordered stoppage of Mr. Peter Obi from entering his state for violating standard protocol.

During the scenario, Mr. Peter Obi intended to visit the Benue's Internally Displaced Camp (IDP) where people were seeking asylum after various hit by criminal herders in the persisting farmer-herder crisis in the region.

However, Governor Hyacinth Alia claimed that Mr. Peter Obi 's visit to the state was political and tended to hit up the polity, negatively. Hence, Governor Hyacinth Alia, although a fellow Catholic man as Mr. Peter Obi gave directive stopping Mr. Peter Obi from coming to Benue State as his security would not be guaranteed while in the state.

Defending his decision then, Governor Hyacinth Alia stated in a TVC interview that: “A very respected Peter Obi was a governor. If you are coming into someone’s state, there are protocols. Very high personality; you are coming into someone’s state, and your party does not even know you are coming.

“I, the sitting governor, did not know you were coming. Then you are going into where I’m protecting even the most, the IDP camp. It’s my duty to protect them. They’ve been displaced. I need to protect them even some more. I don’t know the intent you have,” Mr Alia stated.

While Governor Hyacinth Alia has not released a subsequent order reverting the existing directive, there is no recent or new directive from Governor Alia regarding Peter Obi's eligibility to visit the state, mostly since the latest attack by the herders leaving about 200 people dead.

Interwoven the scenarios, it could be understood that Governor Hyacinth Alia only stopped Mr. Peter Obi from visiting the state because he failed to follow standard protocol recalling that IDP is strictly under the surveillance of the government of the state. Hence, despite the fact that Mr. Peter Obi is under fire for allegedly politicising the Benue's latest killing, until Mr. Peter Obi followed standard protocol and get rejected before one can actually know the current status of Governor Hyacinth Alia's existing directive.

Governor Hyacinth Alia has given a reason for his blocking major opposition figure Peter Obi from visiting the IDP camp in Benue.

Mr Alia accused the Labour Party leader of violating standard protocols by failing to inform the governor ahead of his visit as courtesy demands.