A Welcome Address Delivered by Elder Emeka Esogbue During the Igbuzo Singles Meet Worldwide 10th Anniversary Conference/Lectures inside the Lincoln Event Centre, Ogboli, on November 27, 2021

 A Welcome Address Delivered by Elder Emeka Esogbue During the Igbuzo Singles Meet Worldwide 10th Anniversary Conference/Lectures inside the Lincoln Event Centre, Ogboli, on November 27, 2021

Protocols

It is my pleasure to stand on this podium of Ibusa love and unity to welcome you to this auspicious occasion of the 10th Anniversary of our dear Igbuzo Singles Meet Worldwide (ISM). It gives me great pleasure to see Ladies and Gentlemen, my own kinsmen and kinswomen, happily seated here today. With the utmost love and unity that our Ibusa people are known, the world over. I welcome you to this 10th Conference and Lecture program of our Igbuzo Singles Meet Worldwide (ISM). 

In the Beginning  

From the take-off of the formulation of the idea that led to the origination of this Association to the present times that we find ourselves, it has not been an easy task for me, the initiator, the leaders, and members who have worked assiduously to see to the growth and development of the Association. I am sure that we know too well, all that it requires to work selflessly and societally towards the development of the youths, especially in our Ibusa. Nonetheless, hard work, the love for Ibusa, and ultimately, the grace of God ensured that we are where we are today. 

I must at this juncture, thank everyone that has contributed in one way or the other, to see that our targeted Ibusa youths are by the instruments of ISM, joyfully congregated mentored, and repositioned in life. We all know that the youths are the strength and future of every society and society gets it right when the youths are well-taken care of and ultimately, better positioned. 

This is the spirit and driving force behind the existence of ISM. One of the ways to give our youths contentment is to ensure that they become happily married but beyond this, we must see that our youths are near our Ibusa.  

Our Primary Objectives Achieved    

1. Promotion of Marriage: - With ISM, we have statistically recorded 15 weddings and that is to say that 30 of our members have since foundation, married themselves. Take for instance, from January to November of this year, so far, we have recorded 2 weddings in which 4 of our members have married themselves but it has been a MARRIAGE EXPLOSION year for us. We have 4 outstanding weddings this December. This means that 8 of our members are getting married to themselves within a month and that by the end of this year, 38 members of ISM would have married themselves. We have a constitutional monetary benefit that we give out to members getting married, usually contributed by members within the Department but as it is, my people have become dazed, paying levies. We are not overweighed by God’s blessings but the contribution of money by ‘children, many of who are struggling is overwhelming. Beyond this, we have rewritten the unfortunate saying that “Umuwanyi Igbuzo di nma you, mana wa di hor name on,” Igbuzo women are good for friendship but not marriage.  

Fostering of Healthy Relations Among Ibusa Youths: - This is another testimony of our ISM being that some youths joined us with the complaint of knowing or having friends that are of Ibusa origin. However, all that has changed for ISM members. 

2. Bringing Ibusa Youths Closer Home: - 

ISM has brought many Ibusa youths back home to appreciate the place of their birth. From the initial complaints of “my father said there are many witches in Ibusa” to “Diokpa, I don’t have a place to stay in Ibusa”, our youths now return home. 

3. Gathering the Knowledge of our Ibusa People and Places: - initially, when they join us what you hear is “Diokpa, I don’t know any Ibusa person”, but now, our members have become familiar with our Ibusa people. This is because we go on courtesy visits to Ibusa personalities and become acquainted with them. We have some of our members that are now political office holders in Delta State. 

4. Awards and Recognition of members and non-members: - In ISM, we have a tradition of conferring awards and honours on deserving Ibusa people whether or not they are members of ISM as we are driven by an appreciation of success and good works. Indeed, we have since our foundation, honoured about 100 Ibusa indigenes from different endeavours with some of them returning to appreciate us while a few others do not. 

There are many achievements but let me stop here.    

The Challenges

There cannot be achievements without challenges encountered hence, the establishment, administration, and sustainability of ISM come with inexhaustible problems. I will not delve into all of these problems but will just enumerate a few of them: 

1. Lack of Support from Ibusa Ibusa People: - This is the chief challenge of running any NGO of this nature in our community. Many of our people see ISM and similar organizations as a liability and any call put forward to them for assistance to the Association is often construed as a waste of capital or unmeritorious. Little do our people realize that it is about the future of their children or at least, molding of the destiny of the future of our community.

2. Struggling Membership: - Now, because of the status of the membership of the Association, being a group of youths, most members are struggling and seem unable to fulfill monetary demands. It leaves the Association unable to carry out its objectives and since targeted members are either unemployed or lowly paid in small firms, they are constrained to struggle to make ends meet in which case, they become unable to meet up with the Association’s financial demands. You will be surprised to learn that some of them are unable to provide transport fare to venues of meetings. For this reason, they either retain their membership in dormancy or flee from the Association unannounced.  

Old or Former Members 

3. Unconcerned Attitudes: - One would have thought that ex-members who have become successful would think of assisting the Association but that is not to be found in our members. This is another militating factor to the growth and development of the Association.

4. The Ibusa people Rarely Believe in NGOs: - Sadly, our people are by nature not believers in the activities of Non-Governmental Organizations. They seemed only moved by political gatherings and affairs in the community. Since this is the situation, it gets difficult or near impossible to seek or garner partnership from existing Ibusa organizations. Take, for instance, the Planning Committee of this anniversary, issued letters, requesting support to numerous Ibusa clubs, associations, and organizations but only the Isunamborgu Social Club of Ibusa rendered support to us. All others either chose to ignore such letters or made promises that they soon ignored. Let me stop here and quickly take the way forward for our community in this regard.

Way Forward for Ibusa and Youth Organizations

Ibusa must take interest in the collective affairs of their youths

Ibusa must recognize and begin to initiate NGOs on youth development in the community

Ibusa groups, more notably, branches of the Ibusa Community Development Union must begin to partner with Ibusa youth organizations

Ibusa natives should take measures to recognize and reward the youths of the community 

Ibusa must mobilize to support those who run Ibusa youth organizations 

Ibusa must initiate an annual youth conference for the community 

The Consequences

The aftermath effects of not adhering to the recommendations mentioned above will only amount to a lack of preparations or adequate mentorship ahead of the future generations to take over from the present generation and the repercussion is rife with unfavourable implications for Ibusa socially, economically, and politically. From the name of the community to the least aspects of culture and tradition, it seems odd that our youths who are the future Diokpa and future stakeholders in matters of our tradition are disconnected from the community. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, I welcome you, once again, to this celebration and implore you to avail yourselves of this rare opportunity to relate with our children. 

I thank you all.