For all who know the former Governor of Benue State, former Senator and incumbent Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, George Akume, it is that time of the year to roll out the drums in festivities principally to celebrate him, not necessarily because he is now a year shy of 70, but obligatorily for his good nature and generous spirit. Whereas he turns 69 on December 27, 2022, the date has only provided a context within which to underscore the signification of the celebration of the man, the public servant par excellence and the afficionado of Benue politics, whose many loyalists are wont to simply refer to as the “Just George”.
This is one unique moniker that I had tried in recent times to deconstruct. At the end of the somewhat difficult enterprise of pigeonholing him, I resolved to look at him, more advisedly, from two prisms, to wit: either from the angle of his proclivity and capacity for being fair in all his dealings, especially with the significant others; or from the angle of his simplicity, relating with all and sundry without putting on airs-and this is very natural. If you ask any of his loyalists to give you a head start in understanding “the Just George” moniker, which I did, you would definitely get an overdose of overarching rationalization that is fittingly conclusive.
The virtues of fairness and simplicity would appear to have been the bulwark of George Akume’s relevance in the politics of Benue, which he plays with so much sagacity in the context of national politics. In demonstration of political wisdom, the Just George has characteristically been open to and accommodating of the interests of his loyalists and associates. Not greedy at all, there are no limits to his eleemosynary acts. He simply lives for others. It is not that he has a war chest. Not at all. What he enjoys is a socio-economic and political bank of goodwill that he draws from at different intersections.
A robust success story of his entry into and participation in Benue politics from a civil service background in Benue State, where he retired as a Permanent Secretary, finds anchorage on his inimitable trust capital. You can entrust your life in the hands of the Just George and you will live thereafter to tell the beautiful story of a handiwork of God’s creation in his pristine form; yes, untainted by existential shenanigans and endemic political corruption. As governor (and to be sure, the third civilian governor of the State for eight years from 1999 to 2007), he demonstrated fidelity to the social contract. He left the imprimatur of his excellent administration and management of public finance in the governance architecture of the state.
A man of great equanimity and penetrating brilliance, the Just George is not your run-of-the-mill politician. He is imbued with gravitas. To boot, he has panache, which he deploys in consummating political processes and ancillary activities. He is both sedate and fecund. Like a journalist, he knows something about everything and everything about something. He is especially at home when the subject matters are Benue politics and governance at all levels. He can drive conversation around wide-ranging issues. Avuncular in his disposition, the Just George straddles the political terrain of Benue State and his positive effects draw people closer to him. That explains why he has been able to maintain a productive and result-achieving political structure in Benue State since leaving office as governor.
And, whereas, he won election to represent Benue Northwest senatorial district on the platform of the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2007, he had switched to the platform of the then Action Congress (AC) in 2011 to deflect the shenanigans against his re-election and was able to retain his seat on the platform of the new party. Consequentially, he had, by virtue of that singular feat, emerged as the Senate Minority Leader, a position he held until 2015 when he was re-elected on the platform of All Progressives Congress (APC). In 2019, there was a little setback due to some grand conspiratorial alliances against him. His political trajectory was, at that juncture, altered in the direction of the Executive at the Federal level as President Muhammadu Buhari tapped him for appointment as Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs.
The streak of his singularity of purpose and surefootedness has continued to run through his work ethic, disposition to official assignments, commitment to politics and politicking as governor, senator and now minister. As governor, he played a courageous role in the anti-Third Term agenda, fighting to ensure that the plan by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo to surreptitiously insert the provision for third term in the Constitution was defeated in the National Assembly. And when he eventually got to the National Assembly in 2007 where he contested against Senator David Mark to be senate president, the Just George was clear about his mission in the Senate: to play a leadership role. He got that opportunity in 2011 when he emerged as the Minority Leader.
As Minority Leader, he held his own for all of four years. He did not only effectively and efficiently provide leadership to the Minority Caucus; he also took the opportunity of the minority platform to define his eon with the magnitude of his performance. He continues to record consequential achievements. Despite his equanimity, the Just George is a strategic promoter of group and not personal political interests. In 2015, he single-handed produced Dr Samuel Ortom as governorship candidate of the APC. Ortom won the election, but Ortom had issues with the APC under the leadership of the Just George in the state and decided to defect to the PDP before the 2019 governorship poll when he discovered he might not be able to secure APC’s re-election ticket. Somehow, Ortom survived!
Now, the stage is set for the Just George and Ortom to prove a point in the 2023 governorship election. The point to be proved is: who owns the land of Benue? While Ortom is pushing the candidature of the Speaker of the House, Titus Uba as his successor, the Just George is solidly backing the candidature of Very Reverend Father Dr Hyacinth Alia, whose choice has unsettled the ruling PDP in the state because of his (Alia’s) popularity and cult-like support by the people of the state who are predominantly of the Catholic faith. Significantly, his commitment to ensure the victory of APC’s Alia has caught the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari who referred to it in his 69th birthday message to him (the Just George). Read President Buhari: “In politics, his current leadership of the campaign to elect the Very Rev. Fr Dr Hyacinth Alia as the next governor of his state is worthy of emulation.”
Perhaps, President Buhari’s message should serve as the perfect summation and celebration of the essential persona of the Just George on the occasion of his birthday today (December 27), with other goodwill messages serving to reinforce the presidential approbation. To be sure, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Malam Garba Shehu, issued on December 26, 2022, President Buhari was quoted to have described Akume as a leader who meant a lot to his community, nation and humanity in general.
”Akume is a servant of God in his Catholic Christian beliefs and practices. As a politician and the third civilian Governor of Benue State, he served his people with remarkable excellence and commitment to duty. When elected as a Senator after the successful completion of his two terms, Akume served with distinction. He brought home critical constituency projects, sponsored noteworthy bills and laws and stood against the subversion of the constitution through tenure elongation. As Minister of Special Duties, Akume continues to serve the nation with a high sense of commitment,” President was quoted to have further validated the celebrator-the Just George-on his Especial Day.
This is wishing the Just George a happy birthday and also praying that the Almighty God would bless both the years in his life and the life in his years.
● Ojeifo contributed this tribute via ojwonderngr@yahoo.com
