From Joe Effiong, Uyo

Uyo stood still penultimate Sunday. But it wasn’t unusual. It is a four-yearly ritual, though sometimes, it gets bigger and more glamorous than some years.  It is a period where every member of Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, the apex socio cultural organisation of the Ibibio people worldwide make their pilgrimage-like journey back home to inaugurate their international president and the executive council members.

This year’s edition was the 11th of such an exercise and the biggest masquerade – the international president, Akparawa James Edet, the permanent secretary currently serving in the state ministry of information, mounted the saddle.

It was a day that pulled the high and the mighty within and outside the Ibibio ethnic nationality within and outside Nigeria. It couldn’t  have been less, since the Mboho is not domiciled only in Ibibioland, but has spread to all parts of the world wherever an Ibibio person is found. It is often said where two or three Ibibio persons are gathered in the diaspora, Mboho is formed. But Mboho, equally, is not an all-comers’ association with free entry and free exit even for the Ibibio people.

The 35-year old Mboho, formed  at Calabar, Cross River State, just a few weeks before the General Ibrahim Babangida’s administration created Akwa Ibom State  by 12 Mkparaws of Ibibio extraction, thereafter referred as the 12 Apostles. It was conceived with a commitment and resolve to project, promote and preserve the rich cultural heritage, customs and traditional fabrics of the Ibibio race as then fourth largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria. It was to serve as an umbrella group, a voice and fulcrum of the Ibibio people within the Niger Delta region of the country.

Since coming on board, Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio has opened up windows of opportunities for indigenes and residents of Akwa Ibom State to achieve their basic academic desires through the Mboho Unity schools in Idu, Uruan Local Government Area which is made up of a nursery, primary and secondary wings with world class boarding facilities and the best teaching and non-teaching hands to take the children through.

According to Offiong,  “Mboho has so far offered over 700 scholarships to brilliant, but indigent students of the state beyond ethnic lines, carried out several philanthropic intervention programmes including medical outreach, public health awareness campaigns, unity tour of the state, voters awareness campaign, sanitation exercises, convoking of various conferences, talkshops and seminars were issues of state and national interests are usually dissected and discussed.

“Also as a leading socio-cultural organisation in Akwa Ibom, Mboho has been in the forefront of mobilising other socio-cultural ethnic groups in the state towards promoting and strengthening the bond of oneness, unity, peace and good brotherliness amongst the people of the state in particular and other ethnic Nationalities in the country at large.”

Without necessarily being antagonistic with the government, Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio believes that since every government is put in place to serve the people, that primary responsibility must be diligently carried out and where that fails to happen, Mboho does not hesitate to openly condemn such a government. And when any government does well, praises and commendation follows.

Same goes for multi-national organisations who are expected to carry host communities along in the course of their operations in terms of accommodation of the people’s interest and meeting their corporate social responsibilities to their host communities. Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, though a socio-cultural organisation has so far served equally as a pressure group which ensures the rights of the people of the state are never trampled upon.

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In his inaugural speech titled: ‘Together, we can’, Akparawa James Edet, a winner of National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM)  among  other laurels in the broadcast industry, called for multi-directional support for the organisation, promising that his tenure would restore the vibrancy with which Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio was known for.

“As a leading socio-cultural organisation in Nigeria, it is our commitment to continually be at the forefront of driving and re-strengthening the bond of unity and brotherhood amongst our sister provinces in Oro nation, Anang nation, and other parts of Akwa Ibom State.

“Mboho shall continue to be heard on national issues as the voice of the masses. As the 11th International Exco, we are saddened by the capricious state of our nation, where criminal elements, bandits, boko haram forces, and unknown gunmen kidnap, maim, kill as well as destroy properties of innocent Nigerians without any reasonable actions from the appropriate quarters,” be said.

Calling on fellow Ibibio sons and daughters throughout the country to register and get their permanent voter’s card (PVC) or transfer their registration to their new location, Akparawa James Edet stressed that as the 4th largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria, the Ibibio should register en masse to reflect their strength so  that their voices would be heard resoundingly in the 2023 general elections,.

He acknowledged visible improvements in the country’s electoral process as evident in the recent off season elections in some states and commended INEC for restoring confidence in the system.

But he charged the commission not to rest on its laurels but to explore more innovations to further improve the electoral process and boost public confidence.

The Mboho Mkparawa international president, however, expressed deep concern over the new monster introduced in the nation’s  electoral system called Vote Buying and charged INEC and security agencies to come up with adequate measures to deal effectively with the ugly trend in order to protect the sanctity of the ballot.

The Chairman on the occasion, Mr. Uwem Okoko, acknowledged the efforts of the founding fathers of the Mboho, adding that with James Edet, the organisation will continue to be focal in national discuss, as well as foster peace between the Ibibios and other ethnic groups in Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria in general.

Governor Udom Emmanuel, represented by  Pastor Umo Eno, urged the organisation to maintain its pride of place as a foremost socio-cultural group in Nigeria, by actively participating and lending support to constituted authorities and traditional institutions.