Nigerian Newsday

To any person who is conversant with elementary and secondary Nigerian history, the saying that "Mungo Park discovered River Niger" should not be an unfamiliar one. It has come to occupy a strategic position in the country's lexicon. Yet, this is one popular assertion that has come to be vehemently resented and criticized by radical students of African Historiography. In the face of this resentment, these modern scholars argue rather superficially mundane to the effect that, "How can a foreigner discover a natural feature that had existed since time, and even before the said foreigner himself was born. This is supported by the obvious belief that before the coming of any white face into the area watered by the Niger people (natives) had lived and used the river for so many purposes. Certainly, this is a logical argument so much as it remains within a superficial realm. This is even more so that within historical context, an event does not become history until it is recorded as an historical occurrence and in relation to other occurrences. In the same token, discovery in this sense connotes basically, the internationalization of the source and course of the famous Niger and not as may be thought of, the first person to see the feature.

Here we are in the 21st century tinkering with an idea of yet another discovery. Yes, one akin to the thinking that Mongo Park discovered River Niger. To say that Governor Abdullahi Adamu discovered Farin Ruwa will definitely sound unbelievable and unacceptable to many. After all, as it was with the case of the Niger, how can a governor who came into office only in 1999, have discovered a feature that had existed right from creation and with people dwelling there over time? But to those who know, this is by no means an over stating of the fact.

Well, for a more beneficial understanding of this discourse, lets come to term with the feature under consideration here. Farin Ruwa is one of the magnificent landmarks and tourism endowments Nasarawa state is blessed with. It is a legendary water falls and a major feature from where one of the newly created local government areas in the state derived its name.

Located north of Wamba local government area, this eminent attraction is found on the fringes of the Massange village, right at the foot of the rolling Plateau Hills. As a matter of fact, the falls has its source from the rocky mountains of Bokkos local government area of neigbouring Plateau state. The name Farin Ruwa which means white water in Hausa, is derived from the seemingly white colour of the cascading falls as the water tumbles down the one kilometer steep hill. The site of which is a tourist delight. True to type, Farin Ruwa had existed long even before the advent of Nigeria as a modern geographic entity. Thus, its existence no doubt predated not only Nasarawa as a state, but also, all the people of the young state. Interestingly however, in spite of the age of this feature, its captivating nature and location, Farin Ruwa hitherto remained known largely only to the people who dwelled within the vicinity. A few visitors may have heard of its beauty and visited the area, yet the site occupied an obscure position in both national and international tourism dis-course and historical prom-inence. This hitherto insign-ificant status of the falls, gave it little or no mention at all in global tourism maps.

Ironically, all these were to give way, arising from the creation of Nasarawa State out of the former Plateau State and above all, the arrival of democracy in Nigeria.

Historically, the geographic area housing the now famous Farin Ruwa was about the last part of the central Nigeria area to be visited by the forces of colonialism. It is recorded that the forces of colonial agents formally took over the northern part of Nigeria with the fall of Sokoto in 1903. But it is an historical fact that the area watered by Farin Ruwa then known as the Mama area was about the part of Nigeria known to have resisted and remained free from colonial conquer up to as late as 1932. Thanks to the terrain of the area and the resilience of the Mama cluster. This cluster was a colonial reference to all the polities around the Farin Ruwa area, be they Arum, Turkwan, Yashi, Kantana and Kulere.

It is therefore a paradox of reality that a place with such an impressive history behind it will only come to the front burner of international discourse only as late as in the dying days of the 1990s. This was precisely when Farin Ruwa became an issue of global litigation in the International Court of Justice at The Hague. It was an object of contest between the Governments of Plateau and Nasarawa States. Reasons, the northern neigbours and brothers of Nasarawa just discovered that a water falls existed there and appeared to be an object of interest, only when the government of Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu in young Nasarawa State began a process of exposing and by extension, internationalizing this gift of nature.

After dragging from the national boundary commission to the highest level, the famous endowment won over by Nasarawa State, was now a re-discovered monument. The discovery of this natural gift by the present administration was to open a new chapter in the drive to harness all available tourism potentials for the benefit of the state and her citizenry. Indeed, there can be no two ways to the fact that it was Governor Adamu who remains the brain behind the initiative that brought Farin Ruwa out of the ditch of obscurity to the centre state of world tourism map.

First, it was Governor Abdullahi Adamu who in his visionary wisdom, laid a solid foundation for the internationalization of Farin Ruwa water falls by staging a special reception for foreign tourism partners from Europe and America at the site in 2001. This was the bold step that set the stage for the popularization of this monument. Since that singular initiative, the area has continued to attract attention, popularity and significant mention in the scheme of things nationally and internationally.

Again, the search for a pride of place for Farin Ruwa and by extension Nasarawa State remained steadfast in the agenda framework of the Abdullahi Adamu focus, leading to the hosting of the national tourism day celebration in the site of the falls on September 27th of the year 2003. One event that attracted the creme of who- is- who in the Nigerian tourism industry and management to Nasarawa State for the first time. And only one year after, the governor succeeded in bringing to the state, the third Presidential Council Meeting on Tourism which was held in Lafia on the 5th of August, 2004.

Outside Tourism as a revenue earner for the state, the Adamu government also appreciated the reality that the Farin Ruwa water falls is also a colossal gift with multiple benefits. This is why the visionary region muted the idea and set in motion machinery for the establishment of an Independent Power Plant, IPP, using the falls for the generation of Hydro- electric power for the budding state. To demonstrate its commitment toward the actualization of this dream, the government has in addition to a substantial provision in the 2004 state budget, also signed a memorandum of understanding with the government of South Korea for a collaborative funding of the gigantic project.

Already, the government has since began the process of opening up the area through massive improvement on the hitherto un-memorable condition the road linking the falls to the outside world. Not only that, the social infrastructure before now unknown to the people have now found their ways to the area just as structures and facilities are variedly being erected in the vicinity of the falls. Today, Farin Ruwa has become a global phenomenon, generating state and federal attentions and investments.

Again, when two years ago, the same government of Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu sought to create additional local government areas in the state in accordance with the wishes and aspirations of the people, Farin Ruwa appeared as one of the new areas as a deliberate step to further expose the area housing this great endowment to steady grassroots' development. Currently, Government has since begun the construction of Chalets at the site of the water falls to serve the accommodation needs of tourists and other local and foreign dignitaries to the area.

Indeed, for an area with rich history, industrious people and great potentials to have remained in the doldrums for too long a time until the arrival of this tourism messiah, and in the twenty-first century for that matter, there can be no two ways to the fact that, Governor Abdullahi Adamu discovered Farin Ruwa.

Musa Abdullahi is NUJ Chairman, Nasarawa State