By Sam Adzegeh
The recent appointment of George Igbegbe Akume (Governor, Senator, Minister) as Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, has opened up a new vista for the more than six million Tiv people as well as the entire larger Middle Belt region of Nigeria.
By virtue of his elevation, Akume today stands tall as undisputed political leader of central Nigeria, and now towers above his contemporaries in the current politics of the region. It is a position he richly deserves, both historically and by merit. It is also a veritable display of trust and confidence in him by President Bola Tinubu, for the position was hotly contested by many, including Akume’s in law and kinsman Chief Engr. Barnabas Gemade.
A scion of the Dajoh dynasty, Akume is a relation of mercurial First Republic politician and Minister, Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarka, renowned champion of minority rights in Nigeria. Tarka’s (almost alone) fight against hegemony and marginalizationsion eventually led to the restructuring of the Nigerian State and forever changed the face of Nigerian politics.
Tarka had, at that time, held sway over the politics of the middle belt. It was mainly in recognition of his immense contributions to its development that the NPN (then) launched its Presidential campaign (tagged Gboko ’81) in Benue State.
Tarka indeed dominated the Middle Belt political firmament like the proverbial collosus, earning for the Tiv nation (at that time), no less than four powerful positions in the regime of Alhaji Shehu Shagari. It was indeed a golden era for Tiv politics.
Alas! Not long after, it all came crashing down like a pack of cards! Within a decade of the unfortunate demise of that great sage, the Tiv nation crumbled, its proud heritage both in the nation’s political as well as professional military affairs almost totally decimated.
Causes of this decline were numerous and multi-faceted, ranging from inter-personal squabbles, lack of cohesion/long term planning as well as growing glorification of mediocrity and mendacity.
By the return of democratic government in 1999, after long years of military interregnum, the mighty Tiv nation had become a shadow of itself. Having failed to capitalize on its political fortunes to develop its immense agricultural and other natural resources, the State slid into bewildered status. The solid foundation laid by its first civilian Governor, late Apollos Aper Aku was allowed to rot.
Efforts by subsequent administrations to reset the State on the path to development were unsuccessful as multiple litigations resulting from electoral processes greatly distracted successive governments from developmental business.
The larger middle belt region itself became easy hunting ground for all manners of bandits with dreams of conquest, both economic and territorial.
Thankfully however, Akume’s immense goodwill, nurtured over decades of careful networking and sustained humanitarianism, positioned him as a top notch player in Nigeria’s politics. It is an irony of fate but testimony to the biblical truism that a prophet has no honour among his own people that Akume’s most ferocious opposition has come from his home turf; those he had empowered politically often turn out his bitterest and most ardent opponents. It is a trend which continues to this day.
Well known for his large heartedness and capacity for forgiveness however, the man has risen above it all and today enjoys a most befitting reward. The reward of his political battles today places the Tiv nation (which leadership of the middle belt has never been in doubt) in a unique position with endless possibilities.
With his charisma, sagacity, goodness of heart and wide political network, Akume stands as a giant on the nation’s political landscape.
All that he now requires to breast the tape is the support and cooperation of his immediate home and middle belt bases. The people of the entire middle belt owe it a duty to themselves and to future generations to support and jealously guard this priceless jewel in their hands.
The ball is now solidly in the court of the political elite of the region to show genuine concern for the fortunes of their people by solidly uniting behind the SGF and ensuring the region’s future, both in terms of security and the development of its agro-economy and other countless endowments.
What this means is that the man must be innured from all local politics. Having been elevated, Akume must be allowed to focus on matters befitting his current status; all political elite must now bury whatever grievances they may harbour against him and form a solid phalanx behind him so that Benue and the middle belt may begin the strides to the greatness they truly deserve.
With President Tinubu’s appointment of Akume as SGF and other sons and daughters of the region into strategic positions, the region is currently poised to achieve just that. A Middle Belt Development Summit may well be the starting point for this regeneration.
The people deserve no less.
