Natives under the auspices of Tiv Rebirth Network have accused the Tor Tiv, His Royal Highness James Ayatse of desecrating the revered stool with arrangements to “sell traditional tittles to highest bidders”, including Governors Nyesom Wike and Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Rivers and Sokoto states, respectively.
The socio-cultural group stated this in a press release issued at the end of a meeting in Gboko town, Benue state.
Chairman of the communiqué drafting committee, Dr. Dondo Edward Tizah, and secretary, Mr. Ade Tombuwua, stated this in the release signed and issued on behalf of 56 others.
The release read in part: “Plans have been completed to confer the title of Nyamkyume Tiv on Benue State Governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom along side, Wike and Tambuwal”.
In this vein, the group also accused the Tor Tiv of “embarking on a mission to honour members of the PDP, the party’s platform he contested senatorial seat in 2007, with Tiv traditional tittles.
The group appealed to the Tiv Traditional Council to “prevail on its Chairman, the Tor Tiv to follow the path of honour and unity by shunning skewed counsels that will further exacerbate divisions and tension in Tiv land.”
Besides, the Tiv Rebirth Network, noted that the ongoing killings in the area “should have moved the Tor Tiv to engineer a process of seeking a genuine solution to the development. But to our surprise His Royal Majesty has been very quiet about this while lives are lost on a daily basis.”
The group however expressed the belief that “our paramount ruler knows the implications of the vicious division amongst the Tiv elite,” adding that “the scenario will rob the state at large of several benefits.
