Nigerian Concord Newspaper
I read with considerable interest Professor Elijah Terdoo Ikpanor’s article attempting to dismiss Rt. Hon. Aondona Dajoh’s projection that Jemgbagh would deliver 200,000 votes for Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa in 2027. I must confess that I am surprised that a Professor of History would attempt to trivialise Dajoh’s statement without appreciating the historical circumstances behind it.
Professor Ikpanor has reduced a longstanding political tradition to voter-registration statistics. Unfortunately, Jemgbagh’s political influence in Tivland is much bigger than electoral arithmetic.
Since 1954, Jemgbagh has remained one of the most politically dominant, experienced and influential geopolitical zones in Tivland. For approximately 27 years, the late Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarka provided undisputed political leadership to the Tiv people. Decades after his death, another son of Jemgbagh, Senator George Akume, emerged as the dominant political leader in Tivland. We must also remember that Jemgbagh produced Senator Dr Iyorchia Ayu, former President of the Nigerian Senate.
These are significant historical achievements. They demonstrate that Jemgbagh’s political leadership is founded on experience, organisation, loyalty and respect for its leaders.This brings us to Governor Hyacinth Alia.
When Reverend Father Dr Hyacinth Iormem Alia entered politics in 2022, his maternal roots and early-life connections to Jemgbagh were well known. The people had every reason to embrace him. However, in less than four years, he has used much of his political energy fighting and humiliating Senator George Akume, a man whose political experience and influence helped shape the political structure from which he emerged.
For many of us in Jemgbagh, that is sufficient reason to reconsider our political relationship with his administration. Political loyalty and gratitude are values we take seriously.
The removal of a Speaker from Jemgbagh and the emergence of another from the Lobi axis further reinforced concerns about how established political interests in the zone were being treated. While no political office belongs permanently to any zone, consultation and respect remain essential ingredients of political leadership.
Interestingly, Professor Ikpanor emphasizes Governor Alia’s maternal connection to Jemgbagh as though it confers automatic electoral ownership. He should also remember that Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa has maternal connections to Jemgbagh. Therefore, if maternal ancestry is a legitimate political consideration, Aondoakaa is not an outsider to Jemgbagh either. More importantly, political support is earned through character, relationships and leadership, not ancestry alone.
On the 200,000-vote projection, Professor Ikpanor argues that it represents only 49.6 per cent of Jemgbagh’s registered voters. But registered voters are not the same as actual voters, and electoral projections are not final election results. Dajoh was expressing political confidence, not presenting a certified election result. Indeed, he may have been modest in his projection. Jemgbagh’s response to Governor Alia in 2027 could be considerably higher.
We also reject any attempt to turn this political disagreement into an ethnic confrontation between Jemgbagh and Kunav. We recognize and respect the many good people among the Kunav, just as we respect every other Tiv geopolitical zone. Our disagreement is with Governor Alia’s political conduct and administration, not with the identity of his people.
The question Professor Ikpanor should be asking is not whether Jemgbagh can deliver 200,000 votes. It is why a zone with such an established tradition of political loyalty should continue supporting an administration that has treated its most prominent political leader with such disregard.
Our support for Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa is a political decision informed by our assessment of Governor Alia’s leadership, his relationship with established political institutions and his treatment of political stakeholders.
Jemgbagh is not claiming exclusive ownership of political leadership in Benue State. We are simply insisting that our history, political experience and collective interests deserve respect.
Professor Ikpanor may call Dajoh’s projection an illusion. We consider it an expression of confidence rooted in historical experience and present political realities.
In 2027, Jemgbagh will speak through its votes. And those votes may tell a different story from the one Professor Ikpanor has attempted to write.
Jemgbagh is not an electoral illusion. It is an established pillar of Tiv political history.
Shadrach Atsuwe
PDP Youth Leader Gboko.
Proud Son of Jemgbagh writes from Ngimbo, Mbatierev, Gboko
8th November, 2026