Idoma seeks agreement before backing Tiv guber

A FEW weeks to the gubernatorial election, the Idoma people in Benue South Senatorial District of Benue State have threatened not to vote for any governorship candidate that fails to sign a written agreement on what he would do for the people if elected governor.

Announcing the resolution in Otukpo during a town hall meeting organised by the Idoma National Forum over the weekend, Maj.-Gen. Geoffrey Ejiga (rtd) regretted that though the people had continued to support their Tiv brothers since the creation of the state 39 years ago, they have always been treated with disdain.

Ejiga, who is chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in Zone C, also lamented that apart from the Tiv seeing the governorship slot as their exclusive preserve, they have not allowed the Idoma to produce a speaker of the state legislature or chief judge of the state.

“We don’t have future in Benue, let nobody deceive you, the solution is to have our state,” he said. “Let us go, because we don’t have a future in Benue State. Let the politics of Benue State be for Zones A and B.

“What we should do, since our votes make them win, they should come and tell us what they will do for our people. They must tell me and my people, or we will not vote for them.”

He noted that other states in the country have allowed minority tribes to govern, wondering why the case would remain different in Benue with Idoma perpetually made to be deputy governor.

Similarly, former Chief Press Secretary to late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, David Attah, wondered why “the position of governor is “untouchable” or no-go-area for the Idoma people.

According to him, it is only logical for the Tiv to allow the Idoma produce the governor after Governor Gabriel Suswam, who has spent eight years, just like Senator George Akume.

Earlier, President of Idoma National Forum, Alex Okopi Momoh, said the forum was created to make the people dialogue with the guber candidates in order to know what they have in stock for them.

Governorship candidates that graced the occasion included Dr. Samuel Ortom of the APC, Samuel Gar of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Dr. Iyorwuese Ligom of the Labour Party (LP), while Terhemen Tarzoor of the PDP and his deputy were represented by Harris Ogbole and Austin Awodi respectively.