Agerzua and Fr. Mfa: The Unsung Heroes Deserving Tiv Chieftaincy Honours

By Timothy Tyokula Hembaor 

On empirical estimation, two personalities qualify to be deemed sufficiently ripe for Chieftaincy Titles by the Tiv Area Traditional Council (TATC) led by the Tor Tiv Hrm James Ayatse  

Those are Mr. Tahav Agerzua and Revd. Fr. Solomon Mfa.

Conferment of Chieftaincy titles on them, if done, will be seen as based on indisputable merit, drawing from the contributions they have made to the upholding and promotion of Tiv unity and cultural interests.

Both men have brought innovations to bear on their unique chosen courses towards the advancement of Tiv cultural fortunes such as has revitalized a once declining Tiv identity and image globally.

While Mr. Agerzua chose the arduous task of gathering into a preservatory compendium the works of foremost Tiv folk singers, Fr. Mfa on his part pioneered the Movement Against Fulani Occupation (MAFO) and has brought onto the stage the Kyegh Sha Shwa (KSS) which is an annual convention of all Tiv sons and daughters, an innovation which effectively plugged the yawning gap left by the death of the Tiv Day Event.

Permit me to buttress as briefly as possible the submissions I have made herein regarding those two icons of the Tiv nation.

Mr. Tahav Agerzua: 

Since 1990, this veteran ace journalist of decades-old experience and pedigree has been involved in the documentation of the works of Tiv folk singers, as well as keeping personal relationships with those living among them. He has concerned himself with their well-being and the sundry challenges of their lives at those levels which are mostly not visible to public sight.

Through the relentless work of Mr. Agerzua,via his book 'The Legends', there is today a documented compendium of all the songs of such great Tiv folk singers like Tarker Golozo, Pevkkaa Zegi, Tôndo Kumbul, Ajo Agôr, Obadiah Orkor, Oliver Aye, Iyoughl Ute, Anche Igbaazeer, Iortimbir Ajabu, Faga Jinge, Ajav Wende, Agugu Igbakumbur, Gari Kwaghbo, Atule Hon, Ya Shi, Gbyue, Solomon Iornem JP, Gabon Shiaondo Akuhe, Uyegher Akwashi and others. 

He has continually promoted the works of those singers through the various mediums of the mass media, such that where they would have fallen to waste and oblivion, they are today safely in the annals of public attention, even to the current and upcoming generations.

This represents no mean feat, as the voyage to this point has been undertaken at huge personal cost through sacrifice in time, financial resources and tasking commitment. It has been a thankless task all through, but Mr. Agerzua brought to bear on it his trademark resilience, coupled with a stoic commitment to efficiency towards the attainment of set goals and objectives.

It must be placed properly in context that folk songs offer several advantages to society, such as preserving the cultural heritage and traditions of a people, promoting social cohesion and community bonding. They also serve as a means of storytelling and relaying of history, providing entertainment and emotional expression, as well as conveying moral messages and social commentary.

Folk singers are delicate, but concrete pillars that hold the culture, tradition and way of life of a people together through their special art. This is that vital component of the life of the Tiv nation which Mr. Tahav Agerzua has dedicated a significant part of his lifetime to preserving.

Revd. Fr. Solomon Mfa:

This versatile, ebullient and quintessential Priest of the Roman Catholic Church has successfully pioneered a most refreshing blending between the institution of the church and the salient interests and cultural heritage of the host community of the church.

In the course of his works, Fr. Mfa has broken ground in two major areas; mobilisation of the people to peaceful mass resistance against evil and oppression, and the revival of the cultural identity, spirit of unity and national cohesion among the Tiv people. His works have served as a vehicle for the promotion of peace, love and a sense of pride in the being of the Tiv man, woman and child.

From Jato-Aka to Yelwata down to Demekpe, Fr. Mfa took a lead role in the Clarion call of alertness, rousing the Tiv nation to the looming peril of annihilation at the hands of the invading jihadist Fulani herdsmen.

Through the Movement Against Fulani Occupation (MAFO) and other indigenous pressure groups and civil society organizations, the groundwork was laid out upon which the government in power sent to the Benue State House of Assembly the Bill which was eventually passed into law as the Prohibition of Open Grazing and Ranches Establishment Law (2017).

The ban on open grazing which eventually became the main Flagstaff of the resistance mounted and led by the Ortom administration against the armed invasion of the state by nomadic Fulani herdsmen, was a fusion of the drive by those indigenous pressure groups which Fr. Mfa was in the vanguard of, and the Benue State Government.

It is worth noting that this was at a time when some of those being conferred with Chieftaincy Titles by the TATC in its latest round of honours were conveniently silent in the face of the atrocities against the Tiv people. They scurried and hibernated in the comfort and security of their wealth and privileged living.

But at that time when it mattered most, Fr. Mfa stepped out boldly and courageously onto the battlefield of resistance. He mobilised the people to the streets and marched ahead of them. He braved the odds, the risks and peril of daring a federal establishment which was on the side of the invading herdsmen. But Fr. Mfa had the option to have confined himself to the pulpit, and none would have faulted him.

His innovation with fostering cultural bonding within the Tiv nation at the same time has emerged to be iconic. Through the Kyegh Sha Shwa (KSS) annual fiesta, he created a fitting festival, one which has effectively stood in the place hitherto occupied by the defunct Tiv Day Cultural Festival.

To date the KSS remains the sole platform upon which Tiv people at home and in the diaspora congregate in the unity and spirit that keeps them in tandem with their identity and heritage as a people. 

The modest contributions of these personalities to the fortunes of the Tiv nation through their industry and patriotism qualify them to be honoured by the very people they have dedicated their time and resources to serving.

While it may be understood that honoring people could be on account of their personal achievements in life, their visible and verifiable contributions to the communities honouring them should be a necessary part of the criteria which qualified them for such honours.

Acknowledging the impact that people have made on the fortunes of a community or society will motivate and inspire others to strive to emulate their feats.

To the contrary, when such deserving personalities as Mr. Tahav Agerzua and Revd. Fr. Solomon Mfa are ignored by the same community which they have served with so sacrificially and with unparalleled dedication, it holds the potential to demotivate others from committing to the cause of community service and the public good.

It is my humble submission and appeal that TATC endeavour to broaden the scope of its criteria for the conferment of Chieftaincy Titles to include the likes of Mr. Tahav Agerzua and Revd. Fr. Solomon Mfa.