By Iorliam Shija
My dear brother and friend, Sir Tersoo Kula, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Benue State, I read your rather sarcastic commentary on the eventful homecoming of Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN, the PDP gubernatorial candidate in the February 7, 2027 election, to Lessel, Ushongo Local Government Area, yesterday and found it infantile.
At the event, former Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Aondona Dajoh, reportedly assured Aondoakaa that the influential Tiv political bloc, Jemgbagh, had resolved to support his candidacy with at least 200,000 votes.
Considering that Jemgbagh has over 400,000 registered voters and that Dajoh is himself a prominent political figure in the area, that declaration should ordinarily have caused some political concern and serious reflection in your camp. It is worth remembering that the same political bloc reportedly delivered slightly above 100,000 votes to your principal in the 2023 governorship election.
Rather than engage the political implications of that declaration, you chose sarcasm and attempted to question the historical facts upon which Dajoh’s position was based and the prominent leadership roles Jemgbagh has occupied in Tiv politics since 1951.
As a historian, I might ordinarily allow you the political luxury of dismissing an inconvenient argument. After all, it is your principal who will ultimately bear the electoral consequences. However, I cannot stand by and watch historical facts being distorted for political convenience.
On this matter, I wish to offer you a little education. Nobody needed to hire Aondona Dajoh to demean Zone A. The historical record speaks for itself. Tiv political history, particularly at the highest levels of political leadership, has consistently favoured Jemgbagh.
In 1951, when the Tiv participated in electoral politics for the first time, approximately eight people were elected. They included E.G. Gundu, Ayila Yough, Makondu Igbon, Chia Aka, Wuam Gambe, Pagher Mue, Yough Agera and Akiga Sai.
Interestingly, the initial political arrangement, influenced by the leadership of the then Tor Tiv, Makir Dzakpe, a Kunav man, and the Tiv Progressive Union, an organization that was founded in 1938, produced a numerical advantage for Jemgbagh. Gundu, Yough and Gambe came from the area.
Kwande had two representatives, Chia Aka and Pagher Mue, while MINDA, Sankera and Jechira had one each, represented by Makondu Igbon, Akiga Sai and Yough Agera respectively.
That was only the beginning. When the first set of Tiv representatives arrived in Kaduna, three of them were further selected by the Northern Region Assembly leadership to represent the region at the national parliament in Lagos. Who were they? E.G. Gundu, Ayila Yough and Wuam Gambe. All three were from Jemgbagh.
The next set of elections came in 1954 for the House of Representatives. The successful candidates included J.S. Tarka, Gondu Aluor, Patrick Akuu and Oravande Abaagu.
Although Abaagu was better educated and Gondu Aluor was older and was even a Deputy Tor Tiv, a political consensus emerged around Joseph Sarwuan Tarka, who was barely 21 years old, as the leader of the Tiv delegation. Tarka remained the dominant political figure among the Tiv until his death in 1980, a period spanning approximately 26 years.
He led Tiv political engagement through the pre-independence period, independence in 1960 and the First Republic. Even after the military coup of 1966, he remained an influential political figure and served as a minister until his resignation in 1974.
When the Second Republic began in 1979, it was still Tarka who led Tiv political engagement into the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), the party that formed governments at the federal and state levels.
He also played a prominent role in the emergence of Mr Aper Aku as the first elected Governor of Benue State. Indeed, several of the Tiv political actors who won elections in 1979 were closely associated with him. That was political leadership in practice.
During the Third Republic, which began in 1989 and was interrupted in 1993, Tarka was no longer alive. However, another prominent Tiv son emerged at the national level. Dr Iyorchia Ayu became President of the Senate. Till date, the office of Senate President remains the highest political office attained by a Tiv person in Nigeria’s political history. That is another historical fact.
For the past 27 years, since 1999, George Akume has remained one of the most consequential figures in Benue politics. He became Governor in 1999 and served two terms until 2007. He subsequently represented Benue North-West in the Senate from 2007 to 2019, served as Minister from 2019 to 2023 and is currently the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
He occupies the second-highest national political office ever held by a Tiv person, after Dr Ayu’s position as Senate President.
Sir Kula, these are not matters of sentiment. They are facts of political history. You may question the quality of leadership, the developmental impact or the political decisions of these individuals. Those are legitimate subjects for public debate. You cannot, however erase their historical influence.
Consider another important dimension of Akume’s political career. Since 1999, he has demonstrated a remarkable ability to influence the succession of governors in Benue State. In 2007, he played a significant role in the emergence of Gabriel Torwua Suswam as Governor. In 2015, he was instrumental in the emergence of Samuel Ortom. In 2023, he was again a major political force behind the emergence of Rev. Fr. Dr Hyacinth Iormem Alia.
Three successive governors, from three different political moments, and Akume was an influential factor in their emergence.That is political influence, whether anybody likes it or not. What Exactly Is Dajoh’s Offence? So, what exactly did Aondona Dajoh do wrong in Lessel?
He made a political projection based on his understanding of Jemgbagh’s historical position and contemporary political strength. He declared that the bloc was prepared to support Aondoakaa with 200,000 votes.
You may disagree with his projection. You may question his arithmetic or even challenge his political assessment. That is perfectly legitimate, but to dismiss him as someone hired to demean Zone A is to avoid the substance of the argument.
Nobody is suggesting that Zone A has no accomplished political leaders. Neither is anyone suggesting that political leadership is the exclusive birthright of Jemgbagh. Benue belongs to all its people, and the Tiv nation has produced outstanding leaders across its geographical and political divisions. However, acknowledging that reality does not require us to deny the historical influence Jemgbagh has exercised in Tiv and Benue politics.
There is also an important distinction between holding political office and exercising political influence. A person can be a governor, minister, senator or party chairman without necessarily becoming the dominant political force in his generation. Conversely, a political figure who has never occupied the highest office may still determine who gets there. That distinction is central to understanding the political history of Benue State.
The question before us is not whether Jemgbagh has the exclusive right to produce Tiv political leaders. The question is whether Jemgbagh possesses the political numbers, historical experience and organisational capacity to influence the outcome of the 2027 governorship election.
Aondona Dajoh believes it does. His declaration in Lessel suggests that the bloc is prepared to deploy that influence in favour of Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa.
Whether the promised 200,000 votes will materialise is a matter for February 7, 2027. Elections, after all, are decided by voters, not historical essays or press statements.One thing is certain: Jemgbagh cannot be wished away in any serious calculation of Tiv politics.
Sir Kula, you are entitled to your sarcasm. But as the Chief Press Secretary to a sitting governor, you should understand that political communication is not merely about scoring points against opponents. Sometimes, the more important task is to understand the political realities confronting your principal.
The famous expression, “Comment is free, but facts are sacred”, is attributed to C.P. Scott, the long-serving editor of The Manchester Guardian. As a historian, I take that principle seriously.
I may not know precisely why Jemgbagh has consistently produced or influenced some of the most consequential political figures in Tiv history. But I know that the historical record is there for anyone willing to examine it. Aondona Dajoh did not need to be hired to tell Zone A what history already records. Tiv political history favours Jemgbagh. That is not an insult to Zone A. It is a historical observation.