The Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Alfred Aondonaaver Emberga, has approved the redeployment of the Clerk of the House, John T. Hwande, to the Benue State House of Assembly Service Commission.
In a letter dated August 26, 2025, Hwande was appointed as the substantive Secretary of the Commission, with effect from September 1, 2025.
The directive also instructed Hwande to hand over to an acting Clerk to be appointed by the House on or before August 31, 2025.
Meanwhile, the acting Secretary of the Assembly Service Commission, Mr. David Ochapa, has been directed to report back to the House on or before September 1, 2025, for another assignment.
The letter was also copied to the Permanent Secretary, Government House Administration, the Chairman of the Benue State House of Assembly Service Commission, the Accountant-General, and the Auditor-General of the state for necessary action.
This development marks a major administrative reshuffle in the Benue State Assembly aimed at strengthening the operations of the Assembly Service Commission.
Meanwhile, fresh concerns have emerged over the legality of the decision, as Gurgur Japheth, has faulted the procedure, insisting that the Clerk of the State Assembly is not appointed or redeployed by the Speaker but by the State Assembly Service Commission (SASC).
According to Japheth, “The Clerk of the State Assembly is appointed by the State Assembly Service Commission (SASC). The State Assembly Service Commission, rather than the Speaker, is responsible for decisions regarding the Clerk. Therefore, the ‘redeployment’ should have been approved and communicated by the Commission, not the Speaker. That is the procedure.”
