Matters Arising For The “Hosts”And The future “Publics”
By Abah Matthew Abah-Enyi (windsoundafrica@gmail.com.)
At the onset of Africa’s nationalities’ survival struggles, notable groups ordained with varied values, numerical superiority and deficiencies, migration march dealership prowess, and blood-born cultures were thrown up, more often than not, at no initiatives of their own, only prodded on by human instincts for existential survival.
The Federal University Of Health Sciences, Otukpo, (FUHSO), Benue State which is about to launch its self on the physical and metaphorical landscape of Idoma nation and prepares to cast illuminating rays of medical knowledge on the minds of Africans and the entire world is a fascinating inspiration for a song that must be sung with all aspects of the entire lyrics sticking out for recognition at its first stanza lest the alour of their relevance get lost in the euphoria. Histories of peoples and institutions often times come together to impact greatly on the bends and sharp corners of developmental progress of nations and global blocks – Nigeria, Benue State and Idoma Nation not being an exception. At the onset of all monumental union of peoples and institutions for developmental journeys, essential high points of the two, with a view at playing the effective gadfly along their journeys in the sand of time is a necessary endeavour. This is an attempt at doing just that.
Step forward, Idoma Nation. Resolute minded but numerically disadvantaged from as far back as the 15th century when hegemony wars uprooted them from Kwararafa kingdom where they had co-habited with their erstwhile Jukun and Tiv brothers amongst others, minding their own business. They are on record to have hit their migration march on their ginger feet away from Kwararafa on account of their sparse population size and were the first to arrive and settle around the northern and southern shores of long flowing River Benue. There they tried to re-establish Apa kingdom wh.ch they had lost when Kwararafa disintegrated. Their culture inculcated hospitality however made them open their doors to their travel-weary Tiv brothers when they later arrived at the same shores of the river. Blood-spilling encounters for space possession made them to flee the place they had begun to call their homeland and headed South-East and South-West of Nigeria. The proverbial long spoon in relationship management served them advantageously during their sketchily recorded second encounter with the Igala nationality when they quickly beat a retreat at the first suspicion of doublespeak. They risked limbs, blood and lives to remain where they are today with their deserved and imposed TROPHIES – culture induced hospitality, extinction threat, relatively compact populated people of 500 professors fame many years back who have left undeletable marks at ivory towers across Nigeria, and about the most vanquished at configured numeric-figure dependent democratic leadership struggles at their home state.
Step Forward FUHSO: The first full Medical Sciences Research and Training Institution in Nigeria and Africa established by SB 216 Federal University Of Health Sciences, Otukpo, Benue State(Est etc) Bill 2019, is a project of near spiritual recompense for a people whose leaders exhausted their full quivers of political leadership brickmanship across two generations of legislative chambers and a historical interparty democratic power transfer to achieve its threatened delivery and presidential node. Essential to the Bill is the fact that it was represented to the 9th Senate Chamber by Senator Comrade Patrick Abba Morrro after former Senate President David Mark’s sponsorship at the 8th Senate Chamber. At it’s passage in 2021, the sitting President of The Senate Ahmad Lawal of The ruling party, APC said, “the Sponsor of The Bill, Senator David Mark served the country meritoriously so we should pass the Bill”. Thereafter, tested, spiritually fortified and trusted hands are at the delivery room at FUHSO to supervise its arrival and planning for it’s meteoric onslaught on the horizon of Medical Knowledge across disease infested Africa at a time in history when pandemic’s origins are questionable and even treatments that are not homegrown have become suspects of biological warfare ammunition pellets.
Now, let us look at the future and present “Beneficiaries” of the holy project, which consists of the eggheads who are about to converge on Idoma land from all parts of Nigeria and beyond to till the minds of prospective students for their future glory, on one hand: and the highly digitalized prospective students youths population expected from various continental backgrounds in an era where digital and physical violence threaten to overtake the world, on the other hand. Between the HOSTS, Idoma nation, and the present crop of Academic institutional Technocrats and seekers of knowledge and employment seekers who have every constitutional right to come and taste the famous Idoma hospitality, an unwritten COVENANT MUST prevail.
The Idoma nation, again, is one of the most religious peoples in the world. Next door to Otukpo, there is a Pilgrim Ground in Ai-Okpe where God has graciously kept fait with Idoma land. More importantly, relative to their geographical spread, they are the most prayerful peoples of Nigeria, elites and the proletariat inclusive, contrary to the wrong impression created by mismanaged public information flow. Alekwu K’Idoma is almighty God’s source of maintaining an UNASSAILABLE relationship with His people in Idoma land. The centre theme of the covenant must be that he or she who comes to FUHSO to harvest knowledge and (or) employment must do so with the assurance of the guarantee to harvest without restrains from Idoma Nation’s natural hospitality and good wishes imbedded in the land and it’s culture. He or she MUST also renounce and reject any membership, admiration, abetting or curveting of any secret group or association and prospective antiprogressive organizations that may attempt to lure them to their midst to the detriment of efficient academic activities at FUHSO and in defilement of Idoma land, as doing so would tantamount to their own PERILS. This is the most powerful way of ensuring that FUHSO and the great minds who ensured its delivery, as well as the others who are entrusted with its pioneer planning and nurturing receive their deserved places not only in history books but even as the project remains a work in progress. May He provide all the enabling Environments.
