Soldiers Detain NAN Photojournalist At EFCC Convocation

A photojournalist with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Ibrahim Bashir has been detained by soldiers at the venue of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) convocation in Kaduna.
The soldiers also seized the photojournalist’s camera and took him to the guardroom.
Confirming his arrest through a phone call, Ibrahim said he was lucky his phone was not seized by the solders and was able to place a call to colleagues.
“Right now as we speak with you, I am inside a guardroom at the NDA because a senior officer ordered for my arrest without telling me my offence.
“I showed him my Identity card that I’m a photojournalist with NAN but they (Soldiers) refused to listen to me.
“I was not manhandled by the soldiers. They only detained me and took away my camera,” he said. When contacted, the NDA Public Relations Officer, Major Abubakar Abdullahi, said the photojournalist had been released even though he didn’t say why the photojournalist was detained.

Buhari’s 2019 Ministers And Their Portfolios (Full List)

President Buhari has assigned portfolios to the 43 Ministers sworn in this afternoon. See the Ministers and their portfolios below



Abia – Uchechukwu Samson Ogah: Minister of State Mines and Steel Delvelopment

Adamawa – Mohammed musa Bello: Minister of Federal Capital Territory

Akwa Ibom – God’swill Akpabio: Minister of Niger Delta

Anambra – Dr Chris Ngige: Minister of Labor and Employment

Anambra – Sharon Ikeazu: Minister of State Environment

Bauchi – Adamu Adamu: Minister of Education

Bauchi – Ambassador Mariam Kategu: Minsiter of State Trade and Investment

Bayelsa – Timipre Sylva: Minister of State Petroleum Resources

Benue- George Akume : Minister of Special Duties and International Affairs

Borno- Mustapha Baba Shehuri.: Minsiter of State Agriculture and Rural development

Cross River – Goddi Jeddi Agba: Minister of State Power

Delta – Festus Keyamo: Minsiter of State Niger Delta

Enugu – Ogbonnaya Onu: Minister of Science and Technology

Edo – Osagie Ehanire: Minister of Health

Edo – Clement Agba: Minister of State Budget and National Planning

Ekiti- Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo: Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment

Enugu – Geoffrey Onyeama: Minister of Foreign Investment

Gombe – Isa Ibrahim Pantami: Minister of Communication

Imo – Emeka Nwajiuba: Minister of State Education

Jigawa – Sulieman Adamu: Minister of Water Resources

Kaduna – Zainab Ahmed: Minister of Finance

Kaduna – Mohammed Mahmud: Minister of Environment

Kano – Sabo Nanono: Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

Kano – Major Bashir Magashi: Minister of Defence

Katsina – Hadi Sirika: Minsiter of Aviation

Kebbi – Abubakar Malami: Attorney General and Minister of Justice

Kogi – Ramatu Tijani: FCT Minister of State

Kwara – Lai Mohammed: Minister of Information

Kwara – Gbemisola Saraki : Minister of State Transportation

Lagos – Olorunmibe Mamora: Minister of State Health

Lagos – Babatunde Fashola: Minister of Works and Housing

Nasarawa – Mohammed Abdullahi: Minsiter fo state Science and Technology

Niger – Zubairu Dada: Minister of State Foreign Affairs

Ogun – Olamilekun Adegbite: Minister of Mines and Steel Development

Ondo – Tayo Alaosuadura: Minsiter of State Labour and Employment

Osun- Rauf Aregbesola: Minister of Interior

Oyo- Sunday Dare: Minsiter of Youths and Sports

Plateau- Paulen Talen: Minister of Women Affairs

Rivers- Rotimi Amaechi: Minsiter of Transportation

Sokoto- Maigarai Dingyadi: Minister of Police Affairs

Taraba- Saleh Mamman: Minister of Power

Yobe- Abubakar Aliyu: Minister of State Works and Housing 

Zamfara- Sadiya Umar Farouk: Minister of Humanitarion Affair and National Disaster

USOSA 36th PLENARY

Greetings USOSAns
Important notice please...
Our # 36thplenary will be held in the City of crocodiles - Kaduna, Kaduna State.
DATE: Friday, 11th & Saturday 12th October 2019
This forthcoming 36th plenary will host our Annual General Meeting # AGM , so effectively it will be our AGM.
FGC Kaduna OSA, under the leadership of Abdul Bajehson, will be our primary host.
Abdul and his team promise us a great experience, and are working towards making that happen.
#AGM
# 36thUSOSAPlenary
Save the Date
Thank you
Best Regards,
Sotonye Apiafi Edohore
Publicity Secretary,USOSA

Aper Aku and a very senior citizen of the state

Be careful, learn from Aper Aku

On 30th December, 1983, as it was a routine, Aper Aku and a very senior citizen of the state and a "brother" who they grew up together in Mkar Gboko, Brig John Atom Kpera , sat at the dinner table , to eat and share !

Like I said, it was a routine!

Aku had just returned from the Christmas vacation with his family, to be part of a reconciliation party on 31st December. Many people were waiting for him, he was tired, but he chose Kpera for a talk later in the night, after which Kpera left!

On the morning of 31st December, 1983, a coup happened and the military Government toppled that regime, it was Kpera who would be announced as Aku's replacement.

When Aku was taken to a military tribunal , was implicated by his principal private secretary, Justin Hon who was cowed and intimidated by the military, and sent to 15 years, he wrote a letter to his lawyer, Bar Edward Ashiekaa.

He asked Ashiekaa to take his case to Buhari, he told Ashieeka that since he was not familiar with Buhari, Buhari needed to be told about him..

He begged that he should be considered because of the positive side of his admission to the people , his health and also the fact that he returned himself from Cameroun.

Note: he didn't mention the name of Atom Kpera. We believe, Kpera was Buhari's friend and Aper Aku's brother and friend.

Why would You be looking for some one who will help him talk to Buhari?

Let's all be careful with the people we call as friends!

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Joseph Tarka: MVENDAGA JIBO’S EXPLOSIVES

It is a major conundrum in Nigerian politics that the key actors in politics in the First Republic are still the reference points in terms of substance, standards, bearing. Very few would contest a claim that the Ziks, Sardaunas, Awos, Balewas are still far more organised and balanced in judgment than most of those that came after them. For this to be the case even in spite of the advantages of better formal educational exposure, technological developments and wider political opportunities available to their offspring deepens the conundrum. It compels reflection on some of those standard bearers in the First Republic, partly out of nostalgia but also in a genuine search for answers to problems which they were able to overcome in their own time but which we are not able to in our own time.

One such problem is what Bishop Mathew Kukah has conceptualised as “Need not apply”, a situation across diverse spheres in Nigeria. He used the phrase to capture the situation in Kaduna State where one section endlessly provides the governorship of the state. However, he was speaking to a definitive reality not only in his state but also many other states in the federation as well as numerous other domains in the federal power set up. But this was a problem the earlier elite responded to, directly and indirectly, many years ago when politics was more meaningful. One such spectacular response must be Joseph Tarka’s in 1961.

Joseph Tarka died in 1980 as a senator under the National Party of Nigeria, (NPN). In the First Republic, he was an opposition leader in the north, the leader of the United Middle Belt Congress, (UMBC). He was, therefore, of the progressive tendency on account of being in opposition to the establishment party in the region, the Northern People’s Congress, (NPC). It could be said that what he did was informed by the dynamics of opposition politics but even at that, what he did is today an exemplar for many states in the country today, the Middle Belt, northern Nigeria and Nigeria. It is the story of that exemplarity we seek to tell here.

In northern Nigeria in the First Republic, opposition to the hegemonic NPC took different spatial and ideological expressions. There was the Parapo led by people like Joseph Olawoyin around present day Kwara State. There was the Northern Elements Progressive Union, (NEPU) around the present Kano area and led by the late Aminu Kano. There was the Borno Youth Movement in present day north east and there was the UMBC around what is today the Middle Belt. Each of these parties had its entry point into the fray but an overarching opposition to the NPC united them, even as they did not form a single block to fight. Each had a catchment area but none was essentially a local phenomenon.

Intervention was told by an elderly politician who does not want his name in print that the comradeship between and among the leaders of these parties was so great. The ideological brotherhood and togetherness was tremendous, he said. His must be a truthful testimony or what we see next would not have been possible. That was Joseph Tarka’s invitation to Ibrahim Imam. Iman was a leader of the Borno Youth Movement, meaning that Borno Province was his operational base and Islam his religion.

That was the man Tarka invited to Gboko in the then Benue Province, gave him a constituency and ensued his victory in the subsequent election. By that, Ibrahim Imam turned up in the northern House of Assembly at Lugard Hall in Kaduna to the consternation of the NPC.

NPC was organized in such a way that Ibrahim Imam could not have contested election in Borno, even as an opposition candidate. NEPU politicians who tried to do so in Kano area still remember what they went through.

It is intriguing that what Tarka did in 1961 cannot be repeated now, be it in what was Tarka’s own province then or what is now the Middle Belt or what was northern Nigeria because politics has become a ‘do or die’ investment. The acrimony and fragmentation is unspeakable. But whoever did what he did at a time when the exposure was much, more limited must have a message for Benue State, the Middle Belt, northern Nigeria and Nigeria as a whole. What might then be that message?

In search of an idea of the message and other questions, Intervention sought out Professor Mvendaga Jibo, a Professor of Political Science with the Benue State University, Makurdi. Jibo is a natural candidate for such an interview. Apart from intimate connection with the Benue State Government’s burial arrangement for Tarka in 1980 or the attempt at memorialising him, he has written a Master’s Degree thesis at the University of Birmingham in the UK that was substantially on J. S. Tarka. As a journalist in the now half dead/half alive New Nigerian, he had a baptism of fire from which he came up with the phrase, Kaduna Mafia. In the end, the interview was a bigger bargain that went beyond the Tarka political personality message to contemporary Nigeria. It is published virtually unedited.

What was Tarka’s background?

Tarka was a well brought up person. His father was a local chief. He schooled across the land, from Wanune around Gboko to Katsina Ala and Bauchi Province. Then he was posted to schools in Tivland where he interacted widely, including with the British. He related across the lines and also being a very generous person, it was easy for him to be accepted across those lines. His teaching career exposed him to people across what is Nasarawa State today. He was very cosmopolitan.

What might one regard as the dominant consciousness which drove his politics?

Tarka was motivated by his deep seated desire to liberate the Middle Belt from what he perceived as mistreatment in the hands of the people in authority – the NPC. He wanted the minority elements as a group to be given a fair chance, to protect their way of life, to be given equal treatment in appointments

What were the clearest manifestations of mistreatment at that time to have driven his politics?

One of it was paucity of industries and amenities. No town in Tiv land had electricity. There was electricity in Otukpo but not in Gboko because Idoma was in cabinet, the Tivs were not. Same with Igala and Igbirra. It was the same for appointment into the echelon of the public service. It was most unfortunate that Idomas, Igalas and Igbirras abandoned the struggle for the little they were getting.

So, what did Tarka do?

What he did was to mobilise. He worked tirelessly. Happily, his ideas came to fruition in 1967. His ideas were the backbone of some of what Gowon did. He built the structure Gowon later used to create states. He gave Middle Belt a voice and the benefits and the amenities.

Was Gowon’s move a conscious response to the demands Tarka was making?

Yes. Gowon plucked into it. The time came for it, it was implemented and the nation benefitted.

The nation benefitted?

Yes because without creation of states, the war could have gone differently. It was a strong factor. Gowon himself had Middle Belt consciousness.

Did he? Was he not a typical Barewa College product?

No, he was Barewa College with Middle Belt consciousness. The father was a missionary in Wusasa, Zaria. That background was there. The Christian definition was part of Middle Belt consciousness. It was not for nothing that the British described him as an avuncular Christian.

Was this what took Tarka to Awo?

Awo was the only leader of a national party supporting creation of states. The NPC did not support creation of states. The Igbos too didn’t want creation of states. So, it was natural for Tarka to gravitate towards Awo once his purpose in politics was the creation of more states.

Why were Igbos opposed to state creation?

They dominated their region. They were enjoying the benefits of dominance. That was why people like Murphy, (from present Cross Rivers State) were together with Tarka from that region. They wanted freedom from Igbo domination.

Was that the same reason for Tarka’s fraternity with Ibrahim Imam from Borno?

In 1961, Ibrahim Imam was a persona non grata in his area. Tarka persuaded someone to step down for him in Gboko area and at the end of the election, he was the parliamentarian with the highest vote in the northern House of Assembly. The logic of that action lies in a broader, cosmopolitan agenda that Tarka. Tarka saw Nigeria in larger terms. For him, it would simply be nice to have Imam in the northern House of Assembly as far as intergroup relations and the cohesion of opposition were concerned.

So, why are those who came after Tarka not been able to do this anymore?

Tarka could bring whoever he wanted from anywhere and ensure his victory because he had sufficient control over Tiv voters. But, subsequently, the political parties became what the military wanted. They were formed by the military. No single person can do what Tarka did today. The military is a strong explanation for that. The military completely destroyed interaction and social cohesion of any other groups. You have to practice politics to develop politics. The military abolished politics and reduced it to bureaucracy. You must be screened to contest this or that office. So, politics became like activities of parastatals. In that, the inter-party co-operation disappeared. In its place came the present level of distrust especially as the inthttps://intervention.ng/wp-admin/admin.php?page=layersliderer group thing is more diffused now. Even the Tiv man cannot win an election in Otukpo, not to talk of Jos or anywhere in the Middle Belt. And look at what is happening in Ijaw land – the satisfaction from looking at group happiness at the expense of the nation.

Are we talking of a conscious thing on the part of the military or a product of their commander professional mentality?

There is somebody called OBJ. He has done so much disservice to this country. He claims to know more than he does. All he did in 1978 and 1979 transition and still came back to do in 1999 are part of it. This culture of banning people or getting people to be screened to contest for a political office is all his ideas. What is the logic of banning anyone? The voters know whom they want and they will screen them at the polls. Here, the military want politicians to be screened. But the people doing the screening, looking for credible people are themselves not credible. And so, a certain kind of people found their way into power. It is like other ideas that Obasanjo have about power, politics and government. He brought in his personal idiosyncrasies and could not do anything to build the nation. Up till today, our democracy has no room for independent candidacy. How could that be in the 21 century? Take this idea of making tax payment a qualification for election. And that is Obasanjo’s idea since 1978. See what that is causing in Abia today. Is payment of tax superior to the will of the people? Do people pay tax just because they might stand for election? No civilised country in the late 20 and 21 centuries uses such a criterion to disqualify people. Consider what the country would have lost if Aminu Kano and Zik were successfully embarrassed out of the 1979 transition on ground of non payment of tax. These were the same things Obasanjo came to do in 1999 such as using EFFC to pursue his enemies.

He brought this one they call Ngozi Iweala whom he met in New York, who doesn’t know the Nigerian terrain and, together, they took $18b to go and pay debts. Take that amount to go and pay debt. It is a lot of money. Meanwhile, no single Nigerian village can boast of clean water. People are still using canoes to cross rivers all over Nigeria. From that money, you can bridge every river that has no bridge in Nigeria. It can update all our universities to world standard.

But Obasanjo still poses as a leader, thumping his chest, going places and giving lectures. He is still teaching Buhari how to run this country. And he is a person who must win all battles. A true leader doesn’t do that. The fact is that he doesn’t know those things he claims to know. OBJ represents nothing. He didn’t bring ideas, he didn’t develop infrastructure and he did not fight corruption. How can an ignorant and narrow minded person like that lead a country and the country will get political development?

We need to return to Tarka. You tend to depict him as Tiv leader and not as national hero.

No. But through him Tiv stayed in d struggle. Idoma, Igala and the others sold out. Tiv are committed to the welfare of the Middle Belt. You can see that in 1992 when Gov Moses Adasu wanted Idoma in Apa State but Idoma chose to remain with Tiv where they are minority and can never be governor because rather than building bridges, they hate and insult Tiv. Idoma, unlike Tiv, are narrow minded. They all follow David Mark but Mark does not love them or he would have given them Apa State which he was in a position to create.

Idoma is narrow minded. They need to build bridges to realize their political ambition in Benue State. In democracy, majority has the vote. With seven local government against fourteen of Tiv and two of Igede, Idoma is minority and Tiv, the majority has the vote. Tiv with the vote lives in the villages. They have no contact with Idoma. They do not need Idoma to farm. Many of them will never have any contact with Idoma unless Idoma change their disposition and thinking about Tiv and build political bridges that will sell them to the Tiv voters. There are more Tiv in Nasarawa state than there are Idoma in Benue State. But the Tiv in Nasarawa are not in the House of Assembly or Government House. They are on the farm. They are farmers, that’s all. But in Benue, Idoma wants to be governor and also want to be Vice Chancellor of Benue State University when they are already Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja. The former governor, Gabriel Suswam, gave Idoma SSG otherwise something will happen. Today, Governor Samuel Ortom took SSG away from Idoma and nothing happened. Politics is dynamic. Things have changed and Idoma should realize this. Even today, Igede prefer Tiv to Idoma. Igede would rather stay with Tiv in Benue State than follow Idoma to Apa State. Obviously, Idoma prefer Benue to Apa. For this reason they rebuffed the late Governor Moses Adasu when out of love he tried to help Idoma have their own state in 1993. Idoma turned against Adasu for trying to help them. Meaning that Idoma wants to remain under Tiv majority rule. Those who created the local governments and gave fourteen to Tiv were outsiders, not Tiv. Idoma is narrow minded. Tiv are broadminded. That was why Idoma sold out during the struggle for the emancipation of the Middle Belt. Igala also sold out. Jukun, Berom, Igbirra, they all sold out. The narrow mindedness of Idoma was also evident in their support for David Mark. He was in a position to create Apa State but he deceived Idoma.

How it is the case that Tarka is not of much currency in Nigerian politics today. It contradicts the image of him as a great politician.

It doesn’t. In the whole of the country, are they talking of Michael Okpara or even Zik? Yes, Awo and the Sardauna have survived in popular memories but that’s all. In the case of Tarka, his successors in Benue State, they lack a sense of it. They could have done more such as naming the University of Agriculture or Benue State University after him. I was the Commissioner for Education then, we started the Tarka Institute of Political Studies but then politics evolve and many people who did a lot for their people could be forgotten. It doesn’t contradict that they did great things. There is the problem of passage of time, the reality of contemporary challenges and the emergence of stronger issues. Each of these can determine whether the memory of a particular past leader remains strong in the people or not.

How did he become entangled with corruption?

In fact, my Masters Degree thesis was on the media’s reaction to corruption in Nigeria and substantial portion of it was on that issue. That was 1976 at the University of Birmingham in the UK. What I would tell you is that as the nation prepared for return to civilian rule in the mid 1970s, Tarka was a possible national leader. Some people thought he should be eliminated from the race. They found a willing tool in the late Godwin Dabo who had penetrated Tarka’s political life. Dabo made many allegations. This was intensely discussed in the media. Gowon was running a very civilised government. If allegations were levelled against you, you had to resign. And so Tarka had to resign but since the allegations were not in court, it was difficult to know which ones were serious or valid or just simply frivolous and unfounded.

What then came to be decisive were neither the allegations nor their proof but the media framing of it as corruption rather than allegations. The Lagos press had their own entry point which is understandable. Tarka had been defending the north on the controversy after the census in 1973. That had infuriated the Daily Times . On the other hand, that pleased The New Nigerian. So, each of them took different positions on the Tarka case. The Nigerian press generally has an inconsistent response to the notion of corruption. Awo was a victim of the same sorts of allegations. The Coker Commission indicted Awo but there was no reference to it as long as Awo was a presidential aspirant. This contrasts with the repulsive manner that Tarka’s own was pursued in the press. In the end, the allegations did harm to him. There is no doubt about that.

So, why did Tarka join the NPN in 1978?

His motives for being in UMBC had been achieved because states had been created. His old enemies became new friends. In politics, it is interests that are permanent, not associates.

What then happened to his relationship with Awo?

Awo was sponsoring the UMBC and the relationship was cordial. Tarka hosted Awo in Gboko. What divided them was the ambition. In 1978, each wanted to be the president. They both wanted the same thing. That was what divided them. To get what he wanted, Tarka went to the NPN and Awo formed the UPN. So, they now stood as opponents. The game had changed.

What do we pin down as Tarka’s legacy after all said and done?

The idea that each group must get the benefits of nationhood is Tarka’s legacy. He was a key person in the articulation of this value. With it is the idea of Nigeria as one county. It is not good for groups to think they can hold the country to ransom, be it Niger Delta or any other groups. Yes, they have a point – they have suffered exclusion and they have paid a price for natural resources effects on their environment. These are problems they can discuss with the government and with fellow Nigerians rather than create tension.

Have these ideas legatees in the Middle Belt today?

Many or most of the Middle Belt elite are too rich to worry about some of these questions. They behave like God. Some of them would answer you as if doing a favour while others are too ahistorical and self-centred to be aware.

So, no hopes?

It depends. With this Ijaw challenge, we are waking up the consciousness of groups. Every group will have to rethink its position on whether to strongly support Nigeria or look for an alternative. Some consciousness would arise and that would decide who and how leaders emerge, both in the country and in the Middle Belt.

Nigerian Yakubu Nura Wins World Physics Competition

Dr. Yakubu Nura of the University of Maiduguri, in Nigeria, has won the World Physics Competition by defeating about 5720 contenders from 97 countries.
World Championship-2019 in Physics (Einstein's planetary equation) acknowledged the outstanding international contributions and selected him "based on international meritorious competition".
Dr. Nura’s research article was announced winner among 5721 nominations from 97 countries, screened for the World Championship-2019 in Physics (Einstein's planetary equation).
Nura, who hails from Yobe State, is now recognized as the father of modern Einstein's planetary equation studies in Physics.
The award was instituted to identify brilliant scientists and academicians around the world through world championship.
The World Championship is organized by the International Agency for Standards and Ratings at international level.
Nura, (world champion and fellow, Directorate of Physics, IASR) plays a vital role in the advancement of scientific knowledge in Physics, reports Voice of Nigeria. https://m.facebook.com/groups/791497794211055?view=permalink&id=2822435771117237&refid=13&ref=opera_speed_dial&__tn__=%2Cg

WORLD PRESS CONFERENCE OF THE TIV YOUTH COUNCIL WORLDWIDE

A Call on The Security Agencies to Thoroughly Investigate The Alleged Involvement Of Governor Darius AND Gen .TY Danjuma In The JUKUN / TIV Crisis in Taraba State
"Enough is Enough, The Tiv Nation cannot continue being cannon fodder for the unity of this country.. " - - Hon Mike Chivir Msuaan
President
The Tiv Youth Council like all concerned patriots has watched with patriotic pain and disenchantment the persistent wars between the Tivs and the Jukuns in Taraba State which have intensified lately.
A cursory assessment will reveal that hundreds of lives have been lost within a short period while property worth millions of naira have been wantonly destroyed.
Certainly, not a few women would have been rendered widows while a plethora of orphans have been left roaming the streets.
These worrisome developments have further exacerbated the humanitarian challenge in the nation as we now have to grapple with an even burgeoning number of internally displaced persons (IDPs).
The recent rape, maiming and killing of hepless Tiv Students and staff of the Federal University Wukari is indeed one too many, deserving thorough investigation by the security agencies and enduring solutions to entrench peace.
It is quite surprising that despite several attempts to extend the olive branch and make the warring parties embrace peace, the efforts have all fallen through midway with no tangible results.
The Jukun militia has remained irrepressibly resurgent, consistently coming up with sophisticated weapons, dreaded attack techniques and in several instances kitted as men of the Nigerian Army.
The consistent tactics of the Jukun militia showed a streak of military training and a strong penchant to foment violence beyond primordial inclinations.
This irrational development stirred our curiosity and prompted our Team to conduct a scrupulous inquiry into the factors fuelling and motivating the Jukun militia despite the several overtures at peace.
Our incontrovertible findings from this painstaking inquest revealed powerful individuals with political leanings funding, training and arming the Jukun militia.
Principally, the Governor of Taraba State Mr. Darius Ishaku has remained silent, this has provided cover for the Jukun militia, while also playing the ostrich, instead of addressing the matter as Chief security officer of the state.
On the other hand, T. Y. Danjuma a retired Military General, former Chief of Army Staff and former Minister of Defence has been allegedly responsible for inciting the Jukun Militia.
Their prime objectives aside ethnic dominance is to stir dissent against the government by raising the tempo of war to an Inferno's pitch, thereby fuelling national insecurity for political gains just to paint the President Muhammadu Buhari government in negative light.
This worrisome trend has successfully been deployed surreptitiously by opposition political figures in flash areas to stir ethnic bile and generate needless tension across the nation just to give the government a bad name.
To these fiendish pitchers against the government, no magnitude of destruction is too weighty so long as it tarnishes the reputation of the Buhari led government.
We therefore use this medium to call on the government to rise to the occasion and apprehend all these political players instigating and fuelling violence for cruel political gains.
We herein particularly invite the relevant security agencies to immediately proceed with a thorough investigation of Governor Darius Ishaku and Gen. T. Y. Danjuma (Rtd) in the interest of peace and unity of the two ethnic groups.
We strongly believe the Tivs and Jukuns can harmoniously live in peace as has been in the past if these political masterminds fuelling the war are isolated and dealt with.
We believe that this government will spare no sacred cows in the quest for national peace and security.
Finally, we use this medium to call on all Nigerians to shun all forms of ethnocentric discriminations or biases and they should immediately report all such masterminds of violence and insecurity in their respective domains.
A safer Nigeria will surely be a more productive Nigeria with prosperous citizens.
God bless Nigeria. https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2456209234473906&id=100002545602506&refid=17&ref=opera_speed_dial&_ft_=mf_story_key.2456209234473906%3Atop_level_post_id.2456209234473906%3Atl_objid.2456209234473906%3Acontent_owner_id_new.100002545602506%3Athrowback_story_fbid.2456209234473906%3Aphoto_id.2456226041138892%3Astory_location.4%3Astory_attachment_style.photo%3Athid.100002545602506%3A306061129499414%3A2%3A0%3A1567321199%3A1907311016496963894&__tn__=%2As-R

Federal housing choice voucher program must be modernized

The United States federal government spends roughly $45 billion per year on affordable housing programs, including $20 billion on the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program,  which provides rental assistance to low-income families.

Though the voucher program theoretically allows families to rent units in any neighborhood in their housing authority's jurisdiction, most of the 2.2 million familieswith vouchers currently live in relatively high-poverty, low-opportunity neighborhoods.

My colleagues and I found this puzzling. Research shows that every year spent in a higher opportunity neighborhood during childhood raises adult earnings, increases the likelihood of college attendance and decreases the likelihood of incarceration and teen births. Are families participating in the HCV program predominantly locating in low-opportunity neighborhoods because they actively choose to do so? Or would many families prefer to move to a higher opportunity area but face sizable barriers in the search, leasing and moving processes?

Our recent research shows that offering families assistance with moving to high-opportunity areas can make a tremendous difference for families. Beginning in April 2018, we ran a randomized controlled trial to test the Creating Moves to Opportunity Project (CMTO), a new program designed to reduce the barriers that families face in moving to higher opportunity neighborhoods in the Seattle area. The program provided customized housing search assistance, connections to landlords and financial support to housing voucher recipients.

We found our results striking. Only 14 percent of families receiving standard services from local public housing Authorities chose to move to opportunity neighborhoods-close to the historical average in the Seattle metropolitan area. But 54 percent of families receiving additional basic services as part of CMTO chose to move to opportunity neighborhoods. In other words, the CMTO program has so far increased the share of families who lease units in high-opportunity neighborhoods by 40 percentage points.

CMTO is predicted to increase the lifetime incomes of children who move from low- to high-opportunity neighborhoods at birth by $210,000 and significantly increase college attendance rates, reduce teen birth rates and reduce incarceration rates. Importantly, the program appears to have been similarly valuable for a wide variety of participating families, including families from all racial, ethnic, income, linguistic and education subgroups that participated.Families who moved to higher opportunity areas through the program also report much higher levels of neighborhood satisfaction.

We conclude that many low-income families are concentrated in lower-opportunity areas not because of a strong preference for such neighborhoods but rather because of addressable barriers that currently prevent them from moving to higher-opportunity areas.

We are buoyed by recent policy momentum this direction. Earlier this year, Congress funded the Housing Choice Voucher Mobility Demonstration with $28 million for mobility services, new vouchers and evaluations. This demonstration will help public housing authorities across the country pilot similar programs expanding access to opportunity areas for low-income families. The House added an additional $25 million in funding in June, and Senate appropriators will now consider whether to do the same when they meet this fall.

For those of us anxious to find ways to reduce the intergenerational persistence of poverty, this feels like a very important moment. Blimpinfo.blogspot.com

FACTS OF OUR POLITICAL HISTORY

FACTS OF OUR POLITICAL HISTORY

Do you know that Gov Ishaya Bakut, who was then the Military Administrator of Benue State refused to give Gov Aper Aku, a former Governor of the state a State Burial? In short, the state distanced itself from activities of his funeral!
Even the bad 12 Km access road leading to his country home, it was the Tor Tiv, JA Orshi and Tiv elders including Tilley Gyado, Ako Dzumgwe Shande, JK Bossua, James Adzape and others who had to intervene on behalf of his immediate family for the military gov col JI Bakut to PITY and accept to rehabilitate it so that people will attend his funeral.
To cover the shame, Tor Tiv, Tiv elders and Mzough U Tiv came in and buried him.

Did you know this? The job of being governor of Benue State has indeed being a thankless one. blimpinfo.blogspot.com

CHALLENGES OF THE MAN WHO STOOD ALONE, AKOR THE FIRST TIV CATHOLIC PRIEST.

By Iorliam'Amo Shija

On 15th December, 1990, during his funeral, Very Rev. Fr Alfred A. Ashe who then was the parish priest of St Ann's church Adikpo, broke down and cried uncontrollably. He was not the only priest at the funeral of the man who at a point in his troubled life on earth, stood alone. Some of the other priests at the funeral were Very Rev. Frs. Simon Ivever, who offered the homily, Dominic Yuhe, Stephen Beba, Nicholas Tarbo and Moses Orhungur.
This man was the first to be ordained as a Catholic priest amongst his people, the Tiv people of Central Nigeria. Although Catholic priests do not marry, that day during his funeral, it were not only his "brother" priests that stood by his graveside, but a bereaved wife and five sons! Why so?
As recent as 1969 when Eugene Rubingh published his landmark book, ‘Sons of Tiv: A study of the rise of the Church among the Tiv of Central Nigeria,’ he made a veiled reference to the near impossibility of the Roman Catholic Church making inroads and growth in Tivland due to a lack of the availability of human resources in the church’s clerical state.
According to Rubingh, becoming a Catholic priest was akin to the proverbial camel passing through the eye of a needle. He hinged his assertion on the long duration of training, and the fact that the Catholic Church requires its priests to embrace the vow of celibacy. In the Tiv traditional context where marriage and children are valued, this was a ‘strange teaching.’
But Rubingh referred to one priest of the Tiv stock who was about to complete his studies in Rome and present himself for ordination. He failed to see a second group of young Tiv men who were also close to completing their training to the priesthood for the Diocese of Makurdi, who were then studying in the Nigerian cities of Enugu and Jos.
The latter group, would be the famous seven sons of Tiv who were ordained as priests on 19th December, 1971. They were Frs. Athanasius Usuh, Benjamin Adzor, Moses Adasu, Steven Beba, Simon Ivever, Edward Maaer and Dominic Yuhe.
With hindsight, Rubingh’s postulation has been flawed. The phenomenal growth of the Catholic Church in Tivland in the last 60 years – both in terms of population, structures and clergy - is the antithesis to Rubingh’s conclusions.
The man Rubingh referred to that was about to complete his studies in Rome was James Aerapera Akor, a man who later was ordained as the first Catholic priest for Makurdi Diocese and indeed, the first in this line in Tivland. The man at whose funeral Fr. Ashe broke down and cried, James Akor, was born in May 1938 at Mbanor-Gaav in present day Konsihisha LGA of Benue State to Akor-Ashikula (of the Mbaadogo lineage) and his wife Kese Akor-Ashikula. The last born in a family of six, James lost his father at a tender age and was brought up by an elder sister and her husband.
Returning back to his kindred around 1949, James is said to have fled home to Korinya where he found solace with the expatriate Irish Holy Ghost Fathers who were in charge of the mission in the town; the mission, St. Joseph was among the first Catholic missions in Tivland. He handled a lot of odd jobs for the mission. The story is told of how one day he was digging a well in the mission compound when one of the priests impressed with his physical prowess asked him what he would like to become in future. Without hesitation, James blurted, “a priest.” That was the moment the Holy Ghost missionaries decided to enroll James in school and carter for his education.
Perhaps this was when he caught the eye of James Hagan, the burly English Holy Ghost missionary who was later to become the first bishop of Makurdi Diocese. At this time Hagan was the Prefect of Benue.
The missionaries were not disappointed. At primary school in the RCM School in Korinya, James excelled in academics and sports. Upon graduating from primary school, he attended St. James Minor Seminary in Keffi from 1957 until 1962. He was admitted to Bigard Memorial Seminary Enugu, in 1963 until 1965.
Hagan became the first bishop of the Diocese. He was appointed Bishop on 8th March 1960, having moved his episcopal seat from Otukpo to Makurdi. The diocese made a decision to move James Akor to Rome where he was expected to complete his training for the priesthood at the Pontifical Urbaniana University.
While in Rome, he met and became friends with a fellow Nigerian classmate, John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, today the Cardinal Archbishop of Abuja. The friendship bound lasted a lifetime. While in Rome, James heard that Hagan had resigned as bishop due to ill-health. Together with his friend John Onaiyekan, they made the trip to Great Britain to visit the sick Hagan. The sick bishop famously referred to the two youngsters as “James and John, Sons of Nigeria,” in a in a lighthearted reference of Jesus’ nickname to James and John (‘Sons of Thunder’ see Mark 3:17) - two of His apostles who were brothers.
James Akor maintained a steady father-son relationship with Hagan. He felt a profound sense of loss when Hagan, a man he referred to as his spiritual father and mentor, died in 1976.
James Akor returned to Nigeria in 1969 to prepare for his ordination. While his bosom friend John Onaiyekan was ordained for Ilorin Diocese in August 1969, James was ordained the following year, on New Year’s Day at St. John’s Church in Gboko by Donald Joseph Murray, an Irish Holy Ghost missionary, who had replaced Hagan as bishop. Both Akor and Onaiyekan were the first indigenous priests of their dioceses.
James worked briefly in the diocese before returning to Rome to complete his licentiate and doctorate in Theology. This was when his ‘vocation crisis’ began. It appeared, whatever support he enjoyed from his diocese began to wane. This is gleaned from a recent book by one of the priests of the diocese.
In his book on his calling to the priesthood "Candle Wax," published this year, Very Rev. Dr. Patrick Alumuku who was ordained as a priest of Makurdi diocese in 1981, said James Akor shared with him the difficulties he James experienced and the challenges he faced when he returned from studies.
Alumuku said, ''Among the students I met at the University (of Jos) was a brother priest James Akor, the first indigenous priest from Tivland who had left the priesthood by then…As the first priest of the diocese of Makurdi, there were so many expectations of Fr. James Akor from the community. He had gone to Rome for ordination and completed a doctorate degree in Theology. Many had imagined he was going to be the first indigenous Bishop of Makurdi.''
According to Alumuku, ''There were occasions I had with him during which he shared with me the difficulties he experienced and the problems he had and the challenges he faced when he returned from studies. We discussed not only the misunderstanding that he went through but also especially the lack of comprehension with his brother priests the majority of whom were expatriate. Being the first indigenous priest, he was alone. He said nobody sought to understand his difficulties or positions on issues. That time he was seen as an outsider and he thought he had no chance of going forward. He decided that he would leave the priesthood…''
''Unfortunately, James was still undergoing this programme of the post graduate diploma in education when he got very ill. I had occasions of taking him to hospital from school, however, he did not get much better and James died. The death of James Akor brought a lot of sadness to me. Although he had been duly laicized from the priesthood, we still considered him very much a priest like any one of us,'' Alumuku has said in his recent book.
Canon law, the law regulating and directing activities of Catholics toward the mission of the Church, has set down clear procedures for laicization or leaving the priesthood (see Canon Law # 291ff). Laicization is a process which takes from a priest or other cleric the licit use of his powers, rights, and authority. With the loss of the clerical state goes the loss of the rights and obligations that are a part of a cleric's ministerial role. The process is initiated once a priest expresses a willingness to leave, or circumstances require that he is asked to leave.
The reaction to James Akor’s decision was volcanic, both within church circles and the larger community. In the larger community, there was largely ignorance on the fact that someone could leave the priesthood. The general view was that Divine Wrath would come down on such a person. When James took the decision to marry, varying degrees of sentiments were expressed to a perceived ‘embarrassment and scandal’ in some circles within the Church in Makurdi. Some priests took to the pulpit to express this sentiment.
With the courage of his conviction, James Akor weathered the storm and faced his new reality with optimism and determination. He got married in 1974 to Patricia Jigida Iyange, a lady from Mbaduku whose parents had settled in Korinya in the ‘60s. The lady was from a strict and deeply Catholic background, and had just finished her secondary education at Holy Rosary Girls School in Adoka. So, the initial resistance to this marriage was even from the family of his wife to be, given his clerical status.
Akor settled into civil and family life. The marriage bore him five sons. He named the first ‘Gwaza,’ meaning his fame (especially for leaving the priesthood), had gone far and wide. When the first son had health issues to his sight at his infancy; this was attributed by some that God had visited the family with His Wrath over the decision to leave the priesthood. Other children followed in quick succession: Terlumun, Iorfa, Msughter and Bundepuun.
Dispensation from his vow of celibacy took time in coming. Eventually it came formerly in writing from Pope Paul VI and later from Pope John Paul II.
He was joined in Holy Matrimony to his wife in 1985, witnessed by the church and the people at the same church, St John’s Gboko, where he was ordained as a priest, a few years ago.
James joined the civil service choosing the career path of education. He joined the teaching service of the recently established Federal Government Girls College of Gboko in 1975. He joined the Murtala College of Arts and Science in Makurdi (today’s CAPS). Between 1977 and 1981, he served as principal to Tofi Memorial Secondary School Gboko, Peoples Comprehensive Lessel, and Mbawuar Secondary School Ihugh. He moved to the Teaching Service Board Makurdi in 1981 and was later transferred as the Divisional Inspector of Education in Vandeikya in 1983, and finally to Government Secondary School Gboko.
James enrolled for a postgraduate programme in the University of Jos in 1987, this was when he met Fr. Alumuku. Unfortunately he could not complete the programme due to ill-health. When Bishop Athanasius Atule Usuh was installed as the first indigenous bishop of the diocese in 1989, his friend John Onaiyekan who was now the bishop of Ilorin came for the celebration and decided to pay his sick friend a visit in Gboko.
It was an emotional visit. With James down with a stroke, he struggled to communicate with his friend. Onaiyekan prayed for and blessed his friend. His condition deteriorated in 1990 and he died on Thursday, 6th December 1990 at Mkar Christian Hospital, Gboko at the age of 52.
Saying the homily at his funeral, the late Very Rev. Fr. Simon Ivever said James Akor was one of the privileged few Catholics to receive all the seven Sacraments. This is because when one is ordained to the priesthood, this excludes him from the sacrament of marriage.
James Akor had many close friends among the first crop of indigenous clergy of his diocese, one who was Fr. Nicholas Tarbo. As mentioned by Fr. Patrick Alumuku in his book, although James had been duly laicized from the priesthood, they still considered him very much a priest like any one of them. Perhaps, over time, one day people will come to appreciate his personal decision and courage to leave the priesthood.
On a final note, I must commend one of Akor's sons who is the writer’s personal friend, for responding to my prodding questions about his father's past.
Photo Credit: Akor's Family.blimpinfo.blogspot.com

MZOUGH U TIV AT 34: A POSTSCRIPT

blimpinfo.blogspot.com

By:Iorliam'Amo SHIJA
On 6th August, 2005, three months and fourteen days to his death, His Excellency, Very Rev Father Moses Orshio Adasu, former governor of Benue State, was invited as Guest Speaker , to a Community of Tiv Students , CTS, Benue State University, BSU Chapter's Tiv Day.
Before he began to speak on the topic, "Introspection, Key to the development of Tiv Nation", Fr Adasu observed that such a glamorous and elaborate event put together by mere students to engage the Tiv Question should have been organized by Mzough U Tiv and not students. He noted that it was regratable that Mzough U Tiv and Ijir Tamen were dead!
"I have lamented that Ijir Tamen and Mzough U Tiv which symbolized Tiv Ontology are gone and with them, The Tiv Nation. They must be resurrected.", Adasu tendered as a solution. He also advised that, " The Tiv at home and those in the Diaspora must come together and make this happen. The Tiv need a Forum where together as a nation, they will withdraw into selves , recollect who they are , how they live and recreate Tiv identity"
I think that in recent times too , the huge successes of Tiv cultural festivals like Kyegh Sha Sha, KSS and Mutual Union of Tiv in America, MUTA Annual Conventions have once again, caused Tiv men of thought to think in same lines like the good priest had done fourteen years ago. But why has Mzough U Tiv failed where CTS , KSS and MUTA are succeeding? Has Mzough U Tiv, actually failed? Here, I will X-ray the Mzough U Tiv at 34 years of its formation on the basis of the above problem questions.
According to Prof Mvendaga Jibo, series of activities that led to the formation of Mzough U Tiv began on 6th April 1985. Jibo revealed that it was during the 60th birthday anniversary celebration of the then Tor Tiv HRM, Orchivrigh James Akperan Orshi, Tor Tiv III at his village, Tse Kur Baka, in Mbatie District of Buruku Local Government, that the Tor Tiv hinted on an idea of a Tiv Forum for his people.
When he was elected as 3rd Tor Tiv on 10th March 1979 after the death of his predecessor, Orchivrigh Gondu Aluor, Tor Tiv II on 17th November, 1978, Orshi inherited a divided Tivland. Although, he had become Tor Tiv , 19 years after the Nande Nande political crisis or 23 years after the Atem Ityough crisis, but the effects of these Tiv Political Riots were still unattended to as at the time he became Tor Tiv . But obviously , of most importance and immediate attention to his reign were the crisis and bad blood that ensued from the 1979 Gubernatorial Election between Aper Aku and Mr PRV Belabo and of course the controversy sorrounding his emergence as Tor Tiv.
Despite the fact that beginning in 1969, when he joined politics , Wantaregh Paul Unongo had further divided Tivland politically as it was the case in the early 1960s, but the overwhelming figure of 1979 General Election, who won and took all was of course Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarkaa. In that election, Tarkaa installed Aper Aku as Governor, himself as senator and his son , Hon Simeon Mbakorkaa Tarkaa a House of Reps member . Tarkaa also ensured that Orshi emerged Tor Tiv even when most of the elders and king makers had thought it was the turn of Ipusu from Kwande and had even presented a candidate.
He may have a used a proxy in 1979 election, but in the 1983 General Election that Aku was seeking another term, and just four years after Orshi was Tor Tiv, Unongo decided to go for the governorship election himself. Apart from perhaps the 2011 Gubernatorial Election between Gabriel Suswam and Prof Steve Ugbah, no election in living memory had divided Tivland like the 1983 General Election. Although Aku eventually won , but Tivland lost more . We lost lives and the unity that held our people together. We lost much peace that even when the military took over power on 31st December, 1983 to end that despensation , Orshi was too wise to conclude that the military intervention had ended the political crises of his people .
As politicians were winning elections , Orshi was aware that Tiv identity and unity was failing. So on his 60th birthday, he invited all his prominent sons and daughters to the place of his birth. He pleaded that all his subjects should reason and come up with a non-partisan FORUM to lead the process of charting a path for change in Tivland . That was the message he was preaching since he became Tor Tor Tiv but "Saddened by his inability and want of peace and progress in Tivland , which was aggravated by the common phenomenon of incessant intra tribal fighting and killings of fellow Tiv brothers and sisters as well as ubiquitous pull down syndrome of those who are up at the ladder of success, the Tor Tiv wished the Tiv people to change for the better" , according to Jibo.
Orshi therefore pleaded with his subjects and added that he would reward "any willing Tiv person who would bring Tiv sons and daughters together to share in a common forum for the discussion of Tiv affairs with a token inspiring plea of the sum of 1000( one thousand Naira) only. This plea sunk because there was an immediate response from the influential Tiv sons and daughters of the day
On 17th April, a day after the royal plea, Tiv sons and daughters went into action as they had gathered at Tilley Gyado Hotel, Gboko to discuss the matter that burdened their king and come up with a solution. This inaugural meeting to discuss the issue was convened by Mr Akaazua Muemue, a renowned bussiness man. After series of such meetings, Chia Surma, Ezekiel Akiga, Isaac Shaahu, Ayua Num and Akaazua Muemue himself decided to take up the challenge that the Tor Tiv had thrown at them. They in turn selected two people each from the Tiv intermediate areas to go back to the Tor Tiv and discuss the idea of the forum in details and had the Tor Tiv take the lead of the process to form the forum , with a promise that they will support him to succeed.
Those selected to interface further with Orshi on this matter were from Jechira, Chief Jerome Tilley Gyado and Judge Angwe Asen, MINDA, Chief Ayua Num and Justice AB Utsaha, Sankera, Hon Joseph Tor Bossua and Ezekiel Akiga , Kwande , Chief Ako Dzungwe Shande and Achirga Abuul, while from Jemgbagh it was Ijir Zever and Chia Surma. The Tor Tiv received these delegates and after listening to their appeal that the " the perceived Tiv Forum should be started by Tiv Traditional Council which after taking roots, they would then take over " , he obliged them.
The Tor Tiv on his part called an emergency Ijir Tamen on 27th April , 1985 to receive further inputs from his members of council on the idea. On 1st June, 1985 Mzough U Tiv was born on a day that a second Ijir Tamenwas held for the purpose. Many names were suggested for the FORUM but that which was given by Hon Jerome Hwande as MZOUGH U TIV was unanimously adopted.
What were aims and objectives of this Mzough U Tiv?
1. To promote and provide a forum for unity , peace and harmony among Tiv people in particular and Nigerians in general
2. To Promote , secure and enhance social , cultural and agricultural advancement of Tiv people in particular and Nigerians in general
3. To promote, provide and preserve educational, health and other social institutions for our people at all levels permitted by law
4. To promote , provide and preserve a Forum for dessemination of information and exchange ideas between members of the association or members thereto and to receive and impart such information and ideas
5. To promote , preserve and enhance the traditional institution of chieftaincy, marriage and Tiv Native law and customs
6. To promote and encourage the development of Tiv language and literature
7. To engage in any other area of economic activity for the benefit or well being of the members and the association;
8 To do or perform any other thing or act not expressly provided herein , but which is direct or incidental to the attainment of any or all of the above aims and objectives.
If you look the above lofty ideas and what the Mzough U Tiv has become today then, like Adasu and many other observers had concluded , we can say that the Mzough U Tiv has failed itself and the Tiv people . This failure can still be traced basically from the crisis that the body was set out to solve.
In 1985, the then leading Tiv politician , Paul Unongo refused to be part of the formation of Mzough U Tiv . Unongo and his supporters , to Jibo, were suspicious of the Tor Tiv's idea. Unongo felt that Tor Tiv had formed the association to rally the pro -Tarkaa supporters to frustrate Unongo's emergence as a Tiv political leader( it should be noted that Tarkaa died on 30th March, 1980) . That apart , in the wisdom of Mzough U Tiv, they survived and came up with a Tiv Day.
Dr Tesemchi Makar wrote that the idea of celebrating an annual Tiv Day in September in Gboko , was designed to be a gathering to remember and celebrate the gallant efforts of Tiv's ancestors who led the way in occupying the Benue Valley, the challenges they faced as they engaged other tribes and the colonialists and to celebrate their successes which led to them to have Gboko as their admistrative center in 1933 and a Tor Tiv as their Paramount Ruler in 1946. The Tiv Day was to be used, also , to celebrate Tiv Culture and essence and engage the Tiv question in Independent Nigeria.
In 1987, Paul Unongo who had endeared himself to the military government of the day , prevailed on the then milliary adminstrator, not to attend the Tiv Day. Unongo also directed Council Chairmen who he had influenced their appointments and were loyal to him like JA Aligba, Katsina Ala LGA , Jacob Damjor, Gboko LGA and Nyianshima Bur, Kwande LGA, not to attend Tiv Day. But Due to the pressures from his Tiv colleagues in military like Col JM Inienger and Brig SG Ikya, the then Military Adminstrator, Col J I Bakut shunned Unongo and attended Tiv Day. When he discovered that Unongo nearly misled him, Bakut was so angry that he fired the chaimen who boycotted the Tiv day.
In 1989, 1992 and 1993, Unongo decided to attend the Tiv Day in Gboko but he ended up having issues with the organisers . The issues became glaring, especially in 1989 and 1992 editions . At those two occasions, he had demanded to address the Mzough U Tiv, but the leadership refused. "They didn't want Unongo to get his views and aspirations accross to the masses so easily by using the Mzough U Tiv'.Since those days, partisan politics has continued to stand in the way of organising a very successful Tiv day at home and in making the Mzough U Tiv into a formidable association.
This is a very big vacuum that CTS, Mzough U Tiv ken UK, MUTUK, MUTA, KSS and several other Mzough U Tiv like those in Lagos and Port Harcourt have occupied. Now, do you blame these groups that ordinarily would have been just associates of the Mzough U Tiv at HOME, for organising more glamorous and elaborate events because local politicians have failed to overcome their differences and do same in Gboko? Or do you blame , say a sitting governor or Senators or other representatives of the people honouring invitations to appear at such elaborate events ?
Going forward, the present Tor Tiv MUST rise up and own the Mzough U Tiv . He must return it to its origins and guide it aright along the intension of its founding fathers . Like Adasu observed in 2005, " the future of the Tiv people has become bleak and unpredictable. Indeed , it is saddled with broken promises and accompanied with untold hardships. A people who once were victors have become victims . In all , the metaproblem is founded on lack of leadership in our human institutions " .
I think , with Adasu and many others , I can conveniently agree that Mzough U Tiv and her brain child, Tiv day are dead or lack the proper leadership to steer its affairs , but with Adasu and many other men and women of goodwill, I can't demonize those who like, CTS, MUTA and KSS, that are still keeping the fire burning by organizing Tiv Days annually.
Makurdi, Benue State
3rd August, 2019.