NUIS 2016: LECTURE PRESENTED BY BARR. OWOUPELE JEREMIAH.

A paper presented on the 8th of September , 2016 on the occasion of the national convention of Izon Ebe students at tuomo community in Bomadi local government area of  Delta State by comrade JP Owoupele on the topic A REAWAKENING OF ACTIVISM IN STUDENT UNIONISM AND ITS ROLE IN CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES OF THE NIGER DELTA.

All protocols duly observed.

The presentation of papers in intellectual gatherings such as this is guided by certain rules , however given the fact that i cannot lay claim to such rare field not being a certified academic i believe am still permitted to within the grasp of my little knowledge delve into this discourse without any limitation. The topic itself incidentally falls within the prism of my involvement and thus with your kind permission i will make a bold attempt at dissecting the issues with clinical precision it really deserves.

Activism according to the Oxford dictionary is  defined as an action or policy of using vigorous campaign to bring about political or social change. If that is so it therefore means that every effort within a certified group with an objective and intention to influence  changes in policies is a process in activism. On the other hand unionism in its liberal but not restricted terms mean the activities of a  group of people sharing the same thoughts , philosophy and goals with an intention to influence the overall policies within its environment .The combination of this two cardinal  and defining words in the theme of this discourse has now put us in a clearly defined field which is THE ROLE OF ACTIVISM IN SHAPING AND TACKLING THE CHALLENGES OF MODERN NIGERIA  VIV A VIZ THE NIGER DELTA QUESTION. The issues of the Niger delta has remained a contemporary one with different perceptions and persuasions regarding its resolution in modern times especially as it affects the stability and development of the region and Nigeria at large.

Students have always occupied a very special place in our development history all over the world. The history of students in shaping policies and other issues in  Africa has been overwhelming . The likes of Dr Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana,  Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, julius Nyerere of Tanzania , Nnamdi Azikiwe of Nigeria to mention but a few where at different times student union leaders who shaped their history in different but positive ways.  In our own country, the role of students are glaring and has remained undisputed.

The 70s and 90s saw a robust efforts in unionism and one can authoritatively make reference to the beautiful and heroic deeds as it concern issues of development and  education . The Ali must go March of the 70s and the NADECO and June 12 issues remain fresh in our minds. All depicting the place of students in dealing with challenges of leadership and development in our country.  The history of all the above mentioned leaders saw them participate in unionism while in their undergraduate days and shaped their thinking , perspective and evolved leadership skills with which they influenced their worlds.

It's therefore not surprising that our own hero, late Major Jasper Adaka Boro  like Kwame Nkrumah,  the epitome of our struggle also conceived most of his thoughts while being a student union leader in the great university of Nigeria ,Nsukka. It's believed that while schooling in university of Nigeria he became very conscious of the challenges of  the minorities  in Nigeria and used this experience as a lens to asses and proffer sustainable solutions which gave birth to his dream of a true federal state devoid of unitary features  that makes mockery of the term federalism. Thus armed with such undisputed evidence he began his journey to martyrdom as encapsulated in the now famous twelve day revolution.

This undeniably remains the cradle of every conscious ethnic activity especially the actions of the Ijaw youth council and all similar bodies within the region towards ; resource control, fiscal federalism, environmental justice and true federalism.

Given this beautiful and unresistable history of consciousness , it then follows that the role of students in managing and attempting to resolve our contemporary challenges is not only apt but an inevitable necessity in our match towards realizing the above mentioned key demands of our struggle.  The question now is who are the students?.

In simple literal parlance students are those set of people who are engaged in an academic venture within the four walls of an institution or body .This could be graduate, post graduate and of course doctoral students .However for the purpose of this work our focus will be on the graduate students. This is not to isolate the other two groups but given the facts that history has unquestionably shown that mostly those in the first category show very keen sense of participation in this very critical aspect  of human endeavor.  To many of us here in ijaw land the likes of Oronto Douglas , Isaac Osuaka , Patterson Ogon, Felix tuodolo , kingsley kuku, Miabiye Kromiema , and in recent times Johnny tombebe , diranyei edeseotu, George Alabh turner, Kennedy Olorogun , charles Mutu Okpokiti , Ogofa Ozidi, marlin Daniel, oweilaemi Peretubo , Hon tonye Isenah, miebi Whyte , Von kemedi, udengs Eradiri, Dr tonye Alagba, Austin Adigio, chief mike Loyibo, JP Owoupele to mention but a few have become synonymous with unionism. These crop of ijaw intellectual student leaders committed a better part of their student days to galvanize our people in confronting daunting challenges while undergraduates in their various institutions. Their passion to change the narrative  made them to continue in this guise even after leaving  the university. Today it's no longer in dispute that most of our aspiring  leaders and activitist grow from unionism into the struggle in giving color and shape to our common problem as a region. It's therefore very apt in philosophizing the place of unionism and situate their role  in contemporary challenges in our society .

Accordingly, it's sad to note that the once vibrant, respected and challenging realm of human endeavor, activism has almost gone comatose. What is left today is a carcass of the reality. Students of today do not cut the picture of intellect and those with intellect do not exhibit the true character and traits of a leader versed in the  art and science of activism.  A true activist must be versatile, sound educationally and mentally and above all must be ready to sacrifice for the greater good of his people.

His passion is not driven by material gains but by the honest attainment of sound economic and social goals as it affects his people. As a student leader in the National Union of Bayelsa State students, our goals amongst others  was to affect the policy direction of government in meeting the bursary obligations of our members, active participation in tuition issues in Rivers State University of science and technology, influencing the state government to draft a policy that will encourage and make it mandatory for multinational oil companies in our domain, to allow a certain percentage of our indigenous students in industrial  attachments and of course massive employment opportunities upon graduation. Others objectives includes a robust scholarship scheme by the oil giants as part of its corporate social responsibilities .

In achieving this we were committed to it in all ramification. Today we are proud to have in a small but noticeable manner shaped  the issues that confront us as a people in our time. However the processes in achieving the above mentioned lofty goals were strenuous, frustrating and sometimes most agonizing but we were committed to it and thus we prevailed and succeeded.

Unquestionably , intellectualism plays a prominent role in the present issues that affects our generation. In the circumstances there is no better and active segment of our society than you students who are armed with the requisite tools in shaping the discourse. This is your burden and you must live up to it. Don't be distracted and don't be intimidated for many before you have worked this path. It's full of thorns and challenges but a path towards glory and honor . Its therefore a wake up call to all ijaw students to be conscious that the failure or success of our present agitation is premised on your collective action or inaction and i encourage you to live up to its calling.

What are your goals and priorities, what are your passion and persuasions,  are they material and ephemeral . Are they critical to the realities of the times and are such that it will make your legacies indelible in the sands of time?. Will among you rise another Adaka Boro or will you all consign yourselves to the silence of the weak. The decision is yours to make and ours as custodians of human history to write concisely.

Franz fanon once posited that " the man diea in him who remains silent in the face of oppression ". What have you done as student leaders to sustain the conversation of our collective struggle?. What statements have you made, what affirmative actions have you embarked on in telling our story. What manner of engagements have you done with our leaders in government to realizing our sacred objectives as a people.

Today our region has become a battle ground. Today our creeks are no longer safe for passage neither is our aquatic environment safe for human endeavor . Today our people are persecuted without any moral or legal justification. Today we are treated as a conquered people. Today our oil has become our albatross . Today our people cry in hunger and fear. Today our territory has become militarized. What is our fate in the Nigerian project. Are we gong to remain silent  in the face of this unfavorable conditions, i think not.

Make no mistake our issues can and will be resolved but it will take a courageous and committed resolution by all segments of our society. And every segment must live up to its bidding and in so doing its my very strong and considered opinion that we will surely meet our goals .

In conclusion let me leave you with the words of a wise man in the scriptures, King Solomon " to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the earth" (eccl 3v1) . This is the time and i therefore challenge you to be a compass of leadership in tackling our problems and giving direction to the narrative of our noble quest for justice , fairness and equity in the Nigerian political space. Make history and leave a legacy in your time.

Thank you for your patience.

long live Ijaw Nation.

ALUTA CONTINUA

VICTORIA ASCERTA.

JP OWOUPELE IS FMR SPOKESMAN OF IJAW YOUTH COUNCIL AND  FOREMOST STUDENT LEADER.