I speak in the generic sense as a “stakeholder.” (Let no one mourn or rejoice). And I come in peace, write in peace and hope for peace.

I have exerted myself in media trenches as a reporter, editor and media consultant; striving for democracy, good governance and development.

And I have joined the political fray as an enthusiastic campaign hand in the AC, CAN, APC and PDP etc. I have, therefore, earned the right to speak expansively about Benue politics.

And I know enough to know that development cannot take place in an environment of perpetual strife. Let me paraphrase Gen. Collin Powell by saying: “Development is a coward. It flies away from areas of high tension.”

This means without peace, without a united front and a concerted effort, Benue politicians, baseline and frontline, will remain winded individual players: each obsessed with building his/her individual kingdoms/fiefdoms; each shunning the fellowship of group ideation and corporate visioning; and each, in the end, consumed by the blight of petty squabbles, petty jealousies and petty pride.

And who becomes the poorer for it? The state and her peoples. And if we keep squabbling, when do we have time to think critically, to do productive work and to fulfil our group purpose?

It Is against this backdrop that I take a dispassionate look at the recent peace/reconciliation meetings at the Tor Tiv Palace in Gboko.

Before proceeding, I want to praise the entire TTAC for their tireless efforts in reconciling Tiv political elite, beginning 2011.

It is a mark of his commitment to Benue state’s development in general, and Tiv land in particular, that the Tor Tiv (V), HRM, Begha-u-Tiv, Ochivirigh Prof. James Ayatse, has continued in that tradition by turning his palace into a venue of high-profile Reconciliation/Peace Meetings i.e. 2018, 2021 and now 2024. That is what fathers do. We hail you. And pray for more of God’s blessings.

As former US First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, said: “It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.”

So, there are prerequisites for peace and reconciliation. Attending peace/reconciliation meetings without planning to achieve peace or reconciliation is futile. It is just a session of photo ops. Merely talking about peace or reconciliation is counter-productive.

Parties to peace/reconciliation meetings or summits should truly want peace and be seen as such by the public. They ought to attend such meetings with openness, humility, a sense of duty and a readiness to give and take.

The attitude should always be: to make progress, to remove impediments to peace; to make peace winnable; not to win a war, in such a “family” setting.

Rigid and uncompromising stands do little to advance the cause of peace or genuine reconciliation.

Beyond peacock posturings and fine grooming, Benue people did not see real peace overtures in Gboko, especially on Day 2 of the peace/reconciliation meetings. And we are not seeing that in subsequent outings.

Plus, the body-language of peace-delegates counts too. In fact, even before they speak, their non-verbal cues (hands on hips, crossed arms, crossed legs, furrowed forehead etc) already communicate their position or where they are going.

We saw much of these negative cues on display in Gboko, and in superfluity too!

Above all, those who seek genuine must employ the right language and use the right tones to state their points or air their grievances. This is the surest way of making progress without prolonging reconciliation efforts or jeopardizing summit outcome(s). This is not what Gboko offered.

We may downplay the importance of the tone of voice (intonation, pitch, volume, rate of speech, gestures and emphasis) at such meetings, but it conveys emotions and attitudes as much as it elicits.

Should the peace summiteers have been docile, passive or servile, then? Not exactly. My point is this: They should have been assertive without necessary being aggressive. There’s a big difference.

In Assertive Communication – whether in writing or speech - , parties state their positions in a firm but courteous way. This fosters mutual respect as well as empathy; and makes for efficient-cum-effective outcomes.

The opposite is the Aggressive style. Here, one party is focused on only his/her entrenched perspectives and personal goals. The overriding objective is to intimidate, to pressure and to cow into submission. The opposite/opposing party’s views or positions are, therefore, downgraded, belittled or commonized. This much was on display at the palace!

Those who chose the aggressive style – be it in fiery speeches or heady press statements – may have their loud voices heard/read, but they doom their quests, by and by.

Aggressive communication has its merits too, though: It confers pyhrric victories, even if short-termed; it caters to a narrow constituency; panders to bombastic rhetoric and invests heavily in empty symbolisms.

The chief drawback of this is the hardening of positions, with possible long-term negative consequences.

I think this is where we can situate the position of the stakeholders in the aftermath of their meeting with the traditional institution, particularly the Benue NASS delegation.

The subsequent “communique” allegedly stating their position is proof of their guilt. The “communique” was reportedly posted by their agent, and promptly deleted. But it’s still on many social media platforms: It was shared and screenshot!

The manner of the posting and the deleting of the “communique” suggests that even those behind it probably felt a great deal of discomfort with its wording, timing, tone, aggressive style and undue haste.

It is an 11-point communique.

And about half of the points are cast in stone. It does not give the governor any space to negotiate or manoeuvre. So, where is the spirit of give-and-take incumbent upon all genuine peace seekers?

Points No.3 to 7 almost begin with “must.” The governor must do this, the governor must do that…!

Anyone reading that uncritically may think the NASS members are/were giving directives to one of their special assistants or legislative aides. It’s unbelievable to what levels of contempt these NASS members from Benue state hold the governor, their governor!

Their Position 6 commands the governor to “adopt all keinetic (sic) and non-keinetic (sic) means to secure the state….”

Although every sane person knows that security is the business of all, these aloof representatives of the people conveniently ruled themselves out of any synergy or collaboration with the governor – even though their constituencies are direct victims of this intractable insecurity!

Position 7 of their communique directs the governor on how to run the state and which projects to execute!

Benue has had executive governors since 1999, but this is the first time that an incumbent governor will be receiving orders from National Assembly members on how to run his government! It’s simply unbelievable. Even their agent was overcome with a tidal wave of shame upon posting it, and promptly pulled it down!

Although they want the governor to stop heaping “insults” on them, they are silent on their responsibility. They cannot hold themselves to even their standards. Meaning: Insults, invectives and pejoratives are all good on the governor!

The stakeholders are speaking truth to power. But power is a double-edged sword: they must have the courage to speak truth to themselves too. They must admit that their outing has leaves much to be desired.

Their communique states that in the governor’s absence, they submitted their position to the royal father to transmit it to the governor and then revert to them.

What was the undue haste in going to press? Was it to keep winning the media war? Since the peace process is an ongoing thing – why not wait for the conclusion of the matter before going to press?

This is the moment when every concerned Benue man and woman should weep. If common people lose it, we can point at our leadership. But if our leadership sinks to this low point, to whom do we point?

I am almost tempted to say, in despair: It is finished. But I will not. We live. And because we live, there is hope. Our prayer is thus: Let this too pass away. May the efforts of the Tor Tiv and his senior chiefs not be in vain. Let God bring peace. And let His peace reign in our hearts and hearths; and in our utterances and actions.

The silence of the governor is commendable. He understands that recourse to the media can hurt the peace moves. Peace is not won on newspaper pages. We only celebrate it there. May that day come.

When peace parleys succeed, there is evidence. We see togetherness, a shifting of positions, a harmonization of goals, a united front against common problems etc. We see the joy and pleasantness of brothers dwelling together in love and unity.

When the peace endures, development begins to take root or accelerate. If the development is sustained, we have growth. Over all, the society is better for it, short-term, medium-term and long-term.

Conversely, if peace/reconciliation summits fail, instead of peace, we have pieces and fleeting seasons of pyrrhic satisfaction.

In practical terms, for HE, Gov. Hyacinth Iormem Alia, if this peace effort fails – it would be continued distractions in the form of acerbic press conferences/communiques from stakeholders, stateholders and shareholders. He will govern till 2027 and even beyond (if he keeps faith with the people), but he will not know peace.

And for the detractors, especially those with electoral mandates, it won’t be merriment all the way. Despite his gentlemanly disposition, the public will urge Fada Alia to open the Book of Gubernatorial Records (BoGR).

In it, His Excellency will see the names of one-term Senators as well as one-term HoR Members like Sen. (Chief) JKN Waku (1999-2003); Tachia Jooji (1999-2003); Hon. Maharbe Andiir Gur (Buruku, 1999-2003);

Hon. Mzenda Iho (2007-2011);

Hon. (Chief) Goddy Ikyerave (JP, FCIDA) and Hon.

Benjamin Wayo etc.

We want the better route, and heed the words of President Lyndon Johnson: “Peace is a journey of a thousand miles and it must be taken one step at a time.”

The Tor Tiv (V) has helped us to take the first steps. We must have the courage and the determination to take all the remaining steps.

God bless Benue state.

•Imobo-Tswam, a retired newspaper editor, writes from Abuja.

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