Late Dr. Terkura Suswam
After several hours of reiteration on the social media about the gruesome murder of Dr Terkura Suswam by unknown gunmen, I have gradually come to the stark realization that a part of me has equally been diminished by those live bullets. The dashing politician, entrepreneur, broadcaster, publisher and academic was not merely a member of my generation, but an audacious one at that. The late Terkura was full of energy, fun and charisma. The irrepressible Terkura had the knack to say the truth even in circumstances where a few of us thought it was rather too impolite or indecent to do so. He was indeed my alter ego of sorts, and also that of my generation.
When the American writer, Harper Lee wrote his award-winning novel, TO KILL THE MOCKINGBIRD in 1960, she probably may not have had a way of knowing that she was creating a striking metaphor that would exemplify the lifestyle of a baby was that only being conceived at the time of the novel’s publication. Mockingbirds are the earth’s most friendly birds. They wear a long tail, greyish and bluish in colour, and wallow among a colony of different birds, flaunting their sartorial effervescence with dignity. They are called Mockingbirds because they mimic the songs of other birds. They extend the same parody on other creatures like insects, frogs and reptiles in a way that creates a natural symphony in the ecology. Mockingbirds are harmless and playful. They symbolize family, unity, conviviality and communication. They just sing, and in doing so, create fun and make the world a better place to live in.
Indeed, my dear friend, the late Terkura was big fun to live with. It is difficult to think of a better natural metaphor to illustrate Dr Terkura Suswam than that of a mockingbird. As the immediate elder brother of Senator Gabriel Suswam, former two-term governor of Benue state, he used his enormous influence to bring a great deal of development to his village, Anyiin. He established a gigantic modern rice milling factory, set up a Polytechnic and a community radio station, constructed various infrastructures including a modern market, a police station, a computer school and cyber cafe, modern church buildings and of course, blocks upon blocks of modern architecture that sent many other bigger cities green with envy.
But what was most amazing about Terkura was his decision to abandon the gliz and glamor of city living and retire to the serene landscapes of Anyiin to watch the growth of the metropolis of his experiments. I guess, like a mockingbird, he derived his fulfillment in seeing his folks share in the amenities he created or caused his ever-understanding brother to create.
But then, why should anyone think of killing the mockingbird? Where is the pride of Anyiin to allow evil men to desecrate the land by killing a friendly bird? In Harper Lee’s novel, TO KILL THE MOCKINGBIRD, the moral imperative is to protect the good and vulnerable members of the fictional Maycomb city, a luxury which Anyiin has failed to provide Terkura. Those agents of death walked in at the time the city was still awake but probably unprepared to defend its residents. It is possible that Anyiin and the Sankera people generally misjudge their sons and daughters.
The late Terkura’s bold and unpretentious outlook must have given a wrong message about his invincibility. The city of Anyiin may have taken for granted that their indomitable Terkura was also human and also as vulnerable as every other resident. This is a man who occasionally showered them with money, a man who regularly mediated in their conflicts with the marauding Fulani herdsmen and a man who willingly provides free bundles of zinc for those aspiring to change their dwellings into modern architecture. This is a man who successfully organized a friendly soccer competition between the fulani herdsmen and Tiv youths, in which the Tiv won with a symbolic victory of one-nil. Or it could simply be that Anyiin in its innocence didn’t see it coming. The mockingbird, the symbol of innocence has been killed. This is indeed ominous. No society should allow this senseless desecration of its serenity.
To kill Dr Terkura Suswam in such a cheap manner, at a place where his umbilical cord was buried, is to publicly announce to all Tiv elites to steer clear of their villages. We are further reminded that evil forces have taken over and our land has lost its shine