Ishaku not muzzling Tivs – Aide
The ongoing agitation by some petitioners of Tiv extraction in Taraba State, alleging persecution has been described as unfair and unwarranted. Some Tiv stakeholders from the state recently accused Governor Darius Ishaku of attempting to muzzle them and render them homeless.
But in a reaction, Senior Special Assistant to the governor Public Affairs, Emmanuel Bello, said such allegations were fabricated and can’t stand scrutiny.
He said, “all you need to do is to fact check some of those claims and you find out that they fall flat. Governor Darius Ishaku is easily one of the most Tiv friendly governors in the annals of the state. He has not only demonstrated his love for the Tiv nation, he is the only one doing anything worth the while to move them forward in Taraba. In a way, Governor Darius actually feels an affinity with Tiv people both as an in-law and someone who has championed the cause of these wonderful people in Taraba State and elsewhere. Governor Darius’s wife is Tiv. Beyond that, his colleague, the governor of Benue State is also an ally. He was in the federal cabinet with Chief Samuel Ortom. And even before then, they had interactions.”
He said “if you check it out you would see that this administration has created more political opportunities. So where is all the agitation coming from? This is just the work of a few funny politicians in opposition. The matter has to do with an ancient conundrum over the renaming of a village originally called Kwararafa in the southern part of the state. The Tiv renamed this place “Dan Anacha”a certain specie of yam that became popular in those parts. But Kwararafa holds a lot of significance to the inhabitants there as the spiritual headquarters of the Jukun. Anyone can easily understand their consternation at the sudden change of name. Renaming communities has been one of the thorny issues of co-existence among various groups in our state. Taraba is a collage of various tribes and tongues and our uniqueness is that we have been able to live in peace all these years.”
Absolving Governor Ishaku of any blame Bello said the governor had been holding meetings with major stakeholders over the matter.
“Even when this matter started, Governor Ishaku quickly called his counterpart in Benue. They are right now putting heads together,” he said.