SINCE 1999, Benue State has been a core PDP state. The people always cast their vote en mass in all elections for the largest political party in Africa. Indeed it was in recognition of this that Benue State had produced two national chairmen of PDP and other sensitive positions in the party’s apparatchik.

Once an aspirant emerges a candidate or the flag-bearer of the party in the state, it is automatically cast- in-stone that the person wins because of the dominance of the behemoth called PDP. And from all intents and purposes, the electorate is not in a hurry to dump the party in the February general elections. Although the PDP still has its fair share of internal contradictions symptomatic of the Nigerian state but it remains the only true Nigerian political party through which all Nigerians, irrespective of their creed, religion, status and tribe could realize their aspirations without being whimsically encumbered. Indeed only the PDP could provide its platform for a minority within a minority in person of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan to be president of the Federal republic of Nigeria.

All the major political parties in history did not find the minority ethnic groups worthy of wearing the crown until the PDP came to judgement and broke the ceiling glass. And since Benue, (though peopled by minority ethnic groups) is a strong hold of the party, majority of the power elite want to stick to PDP so that after Jonathan, they could plot for one of their own to be President of Nigeria. Similarly, there are a few ongoing projects in Benue initiated by the Jonathan administration and the fear is that if the president is not returned to Aso Rock, the opposition may jettison them. Curiously, PDP chieftains believe if the party loses the presidential election which comes first on Valentine day, February 14, it may negatively affect the outcome of the February 28 guber polls. It is against this background that the PDP will once again sweep the polls resoundingly in Benue, this year, irrespective of the machinations and propaganda of the opposition.

So, the emergence of the charismatic former Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Prince Terhemen Tarzoor as the Benue State PDP governorship candidate excites me not just because he is my friend and we both share Yenagoa as our second home, not because he is my contemporary, or because of his capacity, competences, uncommon courage, strong conviction, political savvy and sagacity but because a native of Makurdi is at the verge of being governor of Benue State for the first time in history. Like the emergence of President Barrack Obama as the first black American ever to hold sway in the White House, the rise of the cerebral and workaholic native of Makurdi, Prince Tarzoor holds a lot of promise for Benue people and the Tivs in the MINDA axis, in particular.

The natives of Makurdi, the state capital are even more upbeat than I am. Many of them already have a mental picture of the new Nigerian Dubai that Tarzoor will turn Makurdi into. From the defunct Agan Tollgate to the airport, from the airport to Naka road and Apir, the livestock, the birds and the vegetation are in jubilant mood waiting for the return of the native to Government.

The high expectation is not misplaced. Though Tarzoor’s successful stint as Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly was short-lived, he however superintended the passage of many bills into law, protected the interest of his colleagues more than ever before, spoke truth to power, restored dignity to his office, made Makurdi proud by attracting projects to the state capital through lobbying without necessarily compromising the independence of the legislature. But Makurdi’s joy was cut short in 2012 when the Benue State Elections Petitions Tribunal nullified Tarzoor’s election and declared Hon. Avine Agbom of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) winner. The tribunal’s hammer effectively took Makurdi out of limelight. The general thinking in the state capital today is that with the likely return of Tarzoor to power in a higher capacity, Makurdi will recover in hundred folds what it had lost to the opposition.

Aside Makurdi, the people of Benue State are equally lucky to have a Tarzoor as governor. Leadership is a function of time. And as the Chinese would say, Nigeria is in interesting times of credit crunch occasioned by the fall in oil revenue. The onus is usually on the critical stakeholders to identify the personality that is sufficiently prepared to take on the difficult times head on. For us, the PDP collective in Benue, we have elected Tarzoor in a transparent and crisis-free primary election because the delegates who constitute the Electoral College believe the astute economist and turn-around expert is the best man to navigate the state through the hard financial times. What Benue needs now is a friendly and compassionate governor with tight financial management acumen that could manage our scarce resources and our impatient but resourceful population, raise IGR, provide critical infrastructure, deliver concrete developmental deliverables with the available public funds, plug the leakages in the economy, fight corruption and shore up the image of the state in order to attract credible local and foreign investors to Benue, to boost the economy and create jobs for our teeming youths. These are the tendencies the youthful, energetic, enigmatic, emblematic and visionary Tarzoor represents. For sure, Tarzoor is definitely not a saint; like every mortal, he has some faults but they are completely infinitesimal to his virtues!

As Tarzoor turns 43 years on Sunday, January 26 this year, the best birthday gift to give him is for the people of Benue State to vote massively for him and his running mate, Hon John Ngbede on February 28.
•Mr. Agbo, a public affairs analyst, wrote from Makurdi, Benue State.