As a follow
up to my previous blog “BROTHERHOOD:
EIYE CONFRANTERNITY ON PEACE MISSION (1)”, I received number of
phone calls, e-mails from friends and non-friends all over the world for
bringing to light effort been made or
better still currently making to educate the public and every Nigerian confraternity on the importance
of Nation building and peace in the society. Read bellow The
Text Of Speech Delivered By Akin Ogunlola At The First Annual Converge Of
National Association Of Airl Lords (N.A.A.) Canada Chapter On August 9, 2008.Enjoy
it……
Members of the N.A.A., Canada Chapter,
Members of other Confraternities,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am greatly honored to be invited to talk on a
topic that has not only for too long been source of concern to every Nigerian
confraternity but also one that I am the least qualified person to discuss. I
specifically thank the organizers of this discussion and everyone that have in
one way or the other made the program a reality.
Before we proceed, efforts must be made to
understand the terms, a) “nation-building, and b) “Confraternities.
A. NATION-BUILDING
Nation building means different thing to
different people. According to Carolyn Stephenson, “nation building is a
normative concept that means different things to different people. The latest
conceptualization is essentially that nation-building programs are those in
which dysfunctional or unstable or failed states or economies are given
assistance in the development of governmental infrastructure, civil society,
dispute resolution mechanisms, as well as economic assistance, in order to
increase stability.
According to Wikipedia, “Nation-building refers to
the process of constructing or structuring a nation using the power of the
state. This process aims at the unification of the people or peoples within the
state so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run. It can involve
the use of propaganda or major infrastructure development to foster social
harmony and economic growth”. Yet, a 2003 study by James Dobbins and others for
the RAND Corporation defined nation -building as “the use of armed force in the
aftermath of a conflict to underpin an enduring transition to democracy”.
For the purpose of our gathering here today, I would
prefer to adopt the one by the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic
Development, which defined nation building as “equipping nations with the
institutional foundation necessary to increase their capacity to effectively
assert self-governing powers on behalf of their own economic, social and
cultural objectives. The Study identified some core elements of a
nation-building model such as: (a) genuine self rule (i.e. nations making
decisions about resource allocation, project funding and development strategy),
(b) creating effective governing institutions, especially non-politicized
dispute resolution mechanisms and getting rid of corruption”.
To me, reducing poverty, inequality and
unemployment as well as ensuring entrenchment of the rule of law, social
justice and enduring democracy are integral elements of development and
nation-building so that the role of Nigerian confraternities towards
nation-building MUST be measured among other criteria, against how much or how
far they have contributed towards preserving, championing, guaranteeing, or
achieving the above elements within the Nigerian society.
B. HISTORY
OF NIGERIAN CONFRATERNITIES
A Confraternity is defined as an association of
persons united in a common purpose or profession. Examples of early
Confraternities include but not limited to Confraternities of the Cord, which
were pious associations of the faithful, the members of which wear a cord or
cincture in honor of a saint, and the Confraternities of Christian Doctrine,
which was an association, established at Rome in 1562 for the purpose giving
religious education. There was also the Rosary Confraternity, which
existed since the 17th century.
Today, in Nigeria, we also have various associations
of persons or students united in a common purpose. Originally, the earliest
Nigerian confraternity, Pyrates Confraternity (National Association of Sea
Dogs) was founded to fight societal ills and injustice as well as what the
members considered elitist nonsense among university students at the time.
According to a well researched article by Bestman
Wellington, the origin of Confraternities on Nigerian University campuses
dates back to 1952 at the University of Ibadan when the “Magnificent Seven”
headed by Professor Wole Soyinka (code named “Captain blood”) founded the
Pyrates Confraternity (P.C.) to address what was rightly perceived as negative
tendencies at the time. These men known as the Original Seven are:
1. Wole Soyinka
2. Ralph Okpara
3. Pius Oleghe
4. Ikpehare Aig-Imoukhuede
5. Nathaniel Oyelola
6. Olumuyiwa Awe
7. Sylvanus U. Egbuche.
After the Pyrates
Confraternity, came the Supreme Eiye Confraternity (S.E.C) in
1969 also at the University of Ibadan. Historically, the SEC started in 1965
as “EIYE GROUP” at the Nnamdi Azikwe hall, by such
patriotic and visionary leaders like Goke Adeniji, Dele Nwapkele, Bayo Adenubi,
Bode Fadase, Tunde Aluko, Kayode Oke, and Bode Sowunmi among others. This group
of young adventurous students with strong commitment to excellence, desire to
make positive impact on the socio-political psyche of Nigeria and ensure complete
break away from colonial/imperial cultural domination of the time were also not
prepared to be like other conventional clubs known for their foreign or
imported names, hence the unique Yoruba name “EIYE”. The half a century old
usage of “eiye o ni sa sun, on buta” (a bird has no pot, yet feeds itself)
was in fact given by Nwapkele, an Ibo student who was fluent in Yoruba language
and proud of local people’s heritage. The Eiye group later metamorphosed into
the Supreme Eiye Confraternity as we have today, with Ibadan as its MOTHER NEST.
In 1972, a
member of the Pyrates Confraternity, Dr. Bolaji Carew (code-named “Late Ahoy
Rica Ricardo” and a few other members were accused of not following the
teachings of Pyrates and they were expelled. This group of expelled members,
led by Dr. Bolaji Carew later founded the Buccaneers (National Association of
Sea Lords). Another organization was the Neo-Black Movement of Africa (Black
Axe) which started at the University of Benin in 1977. There is also the
Fraternity Order of the Legion Consortium, also called the Klansmen
Konfraternity (KK) that was started in 1983 by five students at the University
of Calabar. A year after the formation of the KK emerged yet another one called
the Supreme Vikings Confraternity (SVC). A few other confraternities such as
the Family Confraternity (Mafia), the Brotherhood of Blood, otherwise known as
“Two-Two” (Black Beret) have also arrived and presently existing in many of
Nigerian universities. Although the early Nigerian Confraternities were exclusive preserve of men, as time went by, we later
witnessed the emergence of a few female confraternities that sprang up in our
tertiary institutions. Examples are the Black Brazier (Bra Bra), the Viqueens,
the Daughters of Jezebel, and the Damsel.
According to Section 40, Chapter IV of the Nigerian
Constitution dealing with Fundamental Rights of Nigerians, “every person shall
be entitled to assemble freely and associate with other persons, and in
particular he may form or belong to any political party, trade union or any other
association for the protection of his interests”. This is the legal
foundation for the existence of any association, confraternity, political
party, religious body etc in Nigeria. Ours are not, and cannot be regarded as
extra-constitutional associations notwithstanding whatever current shortcomings
being used as propaganda against us.
Every Nigerian, regardless of sex, ethnicity, or
religion basically agrees and shares some common goals and desires with his
fellow Nigerians. Among others for example, as a people, we need a functional
and less corrupt government, drinkable water, steady and uninterrupted supply
of electricity, security of lives and property, good and affordable housing and
education as well as a society where there is rule of law, respect for human
rights, enduring stability and social justice.
In the same vein, our government, like every other
governments worldwide, is set up to make the country a better and orderly place
to live by providing the laws, rules of acceptable conducts, punishments
for violations, necessary services to the people in addition to overall
security of lives and property. A good government must also at all time remain
responsive to the needs of the citizens and respect the wishes of the people as
expressed either in an election, referendum or opinion poll.
Members of every confraternity in Nigeria have
common interests in good governance, respect for human rights, advocacy for a
more just and equitable society where the “weak and downtrodden” have equal
opportunity as the privileged and powerful. It is this desire to solve some
known societal problems and protect common interest (personal and national)
that led to the formation of these confraternities in the first place in accordance
with the provisions of our Constitution. Noble as the ideas behind formation of
the Nigerian Confraternities are, it is without doubt that many have lost sight
of the noble objectives that led to their creation or the important task of
nation building that today, rather be part of the solution to national
problems; the confraternities are generally considered, and rightly so, as part
of the problem.
The virtual disappearance of our collective
aspirations as a people, the abysmal failure of successive Nigerian governments
in the performance of their traditional ordinary governmental roles, coupled
with societal lawlessness and high level of corruption in Nigeria have all
combined for the present state of violence, lawlessness and destruction among
various Nigerian Confraternities as we now witness.
Nigeria of today is a paradox of abundance. A
country that is very rich but hungry. We are the 6th largest producers of
petroleum in the world but the citizens spend hours or days at the gas pumps
for gas if and when available, this is apart from ridiculously high prices for
the gas, there is also widespread decay of the country’s infrastructure,
erosion of work standards, lack of support services and of course, corruption
problem that continues to frustrate any meaningful change and development.
According to former United States Ambassador to
Nigeria, Thomas Pickering in 1998, “when we think of the positive changes in
Africa, we are not reminded of Nigeria. Instead, we think of Nigeria when we
consider the Africa of lost economic opportunities, tragic abuses of human
rights, and repression. This is disturbing because I know firsthand that
Nigeria has every reason to be a success story, to be a model for its region
and a leader of the continent. It has the human and material resources to
provide for every one of its citizens. It has or had educational base to
develop political, academic and artistic leaders that could have inspired a
continent, enriched the world and led in international as well as regional cooperation
and development”.
As members of various Nigerian Confraternities, how
have we tried to ensure that Africa in general and Nigeria in particular lives
up to her full potentials? In what ways have we championed worthy causes of
poverty reduction, equality of justice, eradication of illiteracy, transparency
in governance or establishment of enduring democracy to mention a few?
Our “ruggedity”
must not be measured in terms of how many lives and property we have destroyed,
mayhem unleashed on innocent students, crimes we have committed, or the number
of injuries, casualties and violence that we have visited on each others and
our society, but against how many lives we have saved, how many causes we have
championed, and against our overall fearless commitment to fighting for the
less privileged members of the society.
Without doubt, some individual members of the early
Confraternities have
stood up or spoken out and demonstrated rare courage in the face of tyranny and
oppression of the Nigerian people to advocate for rule of law, social justice
or return to democracy. However, the same cannot be said about the
Confraternities as associations of persons united in a common purpose. Many
Nigerians today associate Confraternities with violence and destruction more
than nation building or fighting for any known noble cause that they even refer
to various Nigerian Confraternities as “Cults”.
While there are reports of humanitarian projects
being executed worldwide by the National Association of Seadogs (NAS), the
National Association of Air Lords, and a few others, the criminality and
violence of young Confraternity members on Nigerian campuses who continue to
wage wars of supremacy over petty and personal issues like “girlfriends”, and
remain continuously manipulated by corrupt politicians and university
officials, will continue to overshadow these genuine efforts at
nation-building. The old members of various Confraternities must therefore drop
the debate of how better, less destructive or more patriotic they were compared
to the present crop of members and redirect their energy towards reformation
and redemption of what they had voluntarily started several decades ago.
The challenge before each one of us today therefore
is to fashion out practical ways to ensure sanity in our schools and refocus
energy on the true objectives of Confraternity through both intra and inter
–confraternity interactions, better education for all members, enlightenment
and awareness programs for the young members as well as devising appropriate
disciplinary mechanisms to curb excesses and hooliganism which have for too
long characterized confraternities in Nigeria. In addition, the older members
must be more active and visible in the fight against injustice and advocacy for
peaceful resolution of conflicts, campaign against corruption and other well
deserved reforms in Nigeria. All these must be in addition to nurturing and
maintaining open channel of communication and interaction with the young
members of our various confraternities with the overall goal of discouraging
violence and possible deviation from acceptable standards.
Finally, while it may be true that early
confraternities were not as violent in degree and extent as those of the
present; it is also true that no single Nigerian Confraternity is completely
immune from violence. The oldest Confraternities are known to have resorted to
one type of violence or the other either in their resolution of conflict or
fight for a cause considered noble.
Ours
are not mere social organizations. We are groups that must pride ourselves on
service to community, philanthropy, scholarship, integrity, honor and
tradition. Efforts towards true nation-building by various Nigerian
confraternities must begin with prior eradication of violence from our schools,
rededication to academic excellence and other objectives of various
confraternities as well as renewed commitment and interest on the part of older
members to regulate and supervise the activities of the young ones who are
prone to violence and susceptible to manipulations by Nigerian politicians and
unpopular Vice chancellors.
Towards
this end, we must all mount pressure on both the Federal and state governments
in Nigeria to demonstrate genuine commitment to students safety and security by
implementing those recommendations put forward by Ben Oguntuase (former Capone,
National Association of Sea Dogs) when he proposed that the leadership of all
fraternities in Nigeria should come together with the representatives of
university community and the Ministry of Education to constitute a national
governing body, “The National Inter-Fraternity Council (NIFC) which will be
charged with specific responsibilities aimed at reducing violence and
monitoring compliance with set rules and acceptable standards among others.
CONCLUSION:
As
already stated, I am not unaware of a number of good works and philanthropic
activities of a few Nigerian Confraternities both at home and abroad. Neither
am I unmindful of rare and extreme courage already displayed by certain
distinguished individual members of these confraternities who continue to fight
for a better Nigeria even at the risk of their
personal safety, comfort and freedom. I am personally proud and I salute
them for their relentless patriotism.
It
is my position however that, until we can collectively say that Nigerian
confraternities have succeeded in eliminating inter confraternity violence
on our university campuses, provided leadership training skills for the youths
to make them more productive members of the larger society, while at the same
time contributing to national stability, security of both lives and
property, eradication of poverty and preventable diseases, advocating for
a better and less corrupt Nigeria through the presence
of rule of law, respect for the rights and dignity of man, peaceful resolution
of conflicts in a democratic society where solid foundation is laid for
sustainable economic development and social justice, it cannot be said that we
have contributed in any meaningful way towards the Nigerian nation-building.
To
me, this is the challenge that must be promptly addressed. Membership of
Nigerian confraternities is fast becoming an undesirable stigma and the trend
must be reversed. Every member and every confraternity has a role to play in
reversing that trend. The solution does not lie in finger pointing, name
calling or the frantic and wasteful generational argument over which
Confraternity is “real”, “fake”, “more or less violent” because whether we like
it or not, all fraternities have certain practical characteristics or
qualities in common apart from the bitter truth that the new university
confraternities have come to stay. The new ones are all children and grand
children (or branches) of what was started in 1952.
More
importantly, without the 1972 crises within the first known confraternity
(Pyrates Confraternity) which marked the beginning of break aways, we may not
have witnessed the existence of so many confraternities that presently litter
our tertiary institutions and campuses. The founding members and older ones
must therefore be willing to take responsibility for their action, stop whining
over departure of young fraternity members from academic excellence, or the
wrong-headed direction of present Nigerian youths, and take a more proactive
role towards redeeming the collective image of these confraternities with the
overriding goal of making Nigeria a better place for every all.
To
stubbornly expect the 1950’s standards from today’s youths in an over
militarized and ultra violent Nigerian society is to ignore the unfortunate
reality of Nigeria as a country. Today, the level of government’s use of deadly
force and complicity in suspected political assassination of its critics are
more common than was probably the case even in the Nigeria of 70s. Has anyone
here forgotten so quickly how late chief MKO Abiola and his wife, Kudirat
Abiola died? What about late Pa Alfred Riwane and late chief Bola Ige? I have
also not forgotten the reported assassination attempt on late Abraham Adesanya
on the streets of Lagos by suspected agents of Nigerian state. The point being
made here is not to condone or approve the criminal activities of any member or
particular confraternity but to show that even Nigeria as a society has greatly
and substantially departed from whatever civilized standards of the 60s and
brazenly embraced violence in resolution and settlement of political and social
disputes.
The
youths are products of the society where an average Nigerian believes in power
show, intimidation and harassment. Today, even the local people would seek the
services of military personnel to intimidate others in their demand for house
rents or debts owed. The level of lawlessness is so great that military signs
are even posted on private lands or wrongly acquired property in the form of
“This land belongs to Major-General A, B, or C, and trespassers will be
militarily dealt with”. In most cases, the owners of such properties are
civilians trying to ward off trespassers. To expect a higher standard from the
vulnerable and mostly misinformed youths of same country is unrealistic.
As
members of these confraternities, we cannot continue to clinch to the same old
and unproductive arguments of “we” against “them”, “old members against “new
members” or “real confraternities” against “fake confraternities”. What we
urgently need is solution to the current wave of violence on our campuses,
complete halt in the destruction of lives and property by the present crop of
Confraternities with a view to securing the desired peaceful environment
necessary for honest nation building and enduring development.
Thank you all for your
time. Fly safe.
Akin Ogunlola is a U.S. licensed attorney and Air
Lord.
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