TIV people of Taraba State have resolved to support Governor Darius Ishaku in finding a permanent solutions to the crisis between them and their neighbours in the southern part of the state.

The newly-elected executive members of Tiv Cultural Association and Social Development said yesterday that they had unanimously agreed to join the governor in restoring peace to the state.

Jukun and Tiv ethnic groups in the southern part of the state had recently been at loggerheads, leading to massive destruction of life and property. The crises also brought business activities to a standstill.

The association, led by the president-general, Joshua Ayagwa, visited the governor at Government House, Jalingo, and apologised for the actions of some of their members in the past.

Responding, Ishaku told the group that there was no gain in with other ethnic groups in the area and urged them to take the state as their home and not just as a place of residence.

IN another vein, Governor Ishaku called development partners and the private sector to join the state government to improve the living standard of Tarabans through the provision of adequate water and sanitation services.

While flagging of the construction of five million litres water reservoir in Jalingo yesterday, the governor urged the partners to leverage on the enabling environment created by his administration to serve humanity.

The reservoir, according to the governor, is an indication that the state is moving away from mere rhetoric to taking practical steps in making water and sanitation services available to the people.

Calling on the people to support the reform by paying their water bills regularly and protecting water infrastructure within their domains, he said the state had increased budgetary allocation to the sector.

The development partners include United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Effective Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Services (E-WASH), African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and World Bank’s Community & Social Development Project (CSDP).

The Commissioner of Water Resources, Yusufu Akirikwen, said the construction of the reservoir and related works would mark the last stage of the Jalingo Primary Water Supply Scheme fully funded by the state.