MBOHO MKPARAWA IBIBIO INDUCTS 85 MEMBERS AT 25TH ANNIVERSARY

Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, a socio-cultural organization started in 1987 by twelve members at Bonny Street, Calabar, on Sunday August 5, 2012 at the organization’s world headquarters, increased its membership strength by 85 members through a formal induction ceremony performed by the body’s President, Akparawa Nse Ube.

Addressing the new inductees, Akparawa Ube called on them to be good ambassadors of Mboho as acts of indiscipline, fighting, armed robbery, kidnapping and disrespect to constituted authority of Mboho would not be condoned. In administering the oath of membership on the inductees he charged them to keep to the tenets of Mboho’s constitution and other unwritten rules in their chapters. He admonished the new members to be humble, avoid what he called “group aggressiveness” and contribute to the growth of Mboho.

He said he was pleased that for the twenty-five years of Mboho no member has ever been found to be associated with any criminal activity but rather members have done the organization proud by contributing meaningfully to the growth of past and successive governments of the state.

Akparawa Ube said from the first chapter of Mboho in Itu in 1988 that the body has 46 formally inaugurated chapters in Nigeria and other countries of the world with over 10,000 members.  He said Mboho has been involved in humanitarian activities such as financial assistance to indigent students, scholarship awards, establishment of Mboho Unity School with Primary and Secondary sections with reduced fees for parents with less ability to send their children and wards to expensive schools.

Other achievements of Mboho for the twenty-five years of existence as enumerated by the president of the body include promotion of inter-ethnic cohesion, unity of Akwa Ibom State, promotion of peace, Ibibio language through essay competition, promotion of Ibibio culture, language and tradition.

He said the promise of roofing the Mboho Headquarters was realized and that efforts were in top gear to complete the remaining part which he said has 18 rooms and five suites for lodgings, adding that the auditorium would be commercialized to earn income for Mboho, when completed. 

President Ube said efforts were being made for the establishment of Mboho Micro-Finance Bank as soon as the hall was completed. He said that the body had crawled and walked for the last 25 years and has a task to complete the International Headquarters but assured that for the next 25 years Mboho will be “vibrating” as a proactive organization.

He stated that Mboho has positively affected the growth and development of past and present government of the state by making contributions on issues that affect the growth of the state and would continue to do so, and commended Akparawa Godswill Obot Akpabio for his infrastructural transformation in the state for the last five years.  He said for adhering to the master plan of the state and completing projects started by past governments he has done well.

In a chat with Weekly Insight reporter, the 8^th International President of Mboho vehemently stated that Mboho was not divided and has no parallel body as touted by some people and that those who disobeyed the directive of the leadership of Mboho in the United States of America had since been expelled and would only to considered if they show remorse for their past actions against the body.  He argued that his intended trip to USA on Wednesday August 8, 2012 with eleven other members was to attend and address Akwa Ibom annual convention in that country.  He disclosed that the challenges of his administration has been finances, adding that they have staff of Mboho schools and the international secretariat to pay as well as carry out other humanitarian services.

Earlier, the chairman of the Advisory Committee, Akparawa Val Attah, a past president of Mboho, had thanked members of the body for their doggedness and commitment for the last 25 years where the body moved from Bonny Street in 1987 as a sown seed, germinated and grown with chapters springing from Itu to other parts of the world.  He said Mboho moved from Bonny to Nkemba where effective mobilization has taken it to Obio Imo and finally to the international headquarters.  He advised that Mboho should plan for having a village of its own in the next 25 years as the present hall may not contain its members, saying that the mark of excellence of Mboho was still intact.  He charged members to build on the gains of Mboho and address the issues of unemployment of the youths of Akwa Ibom State.

Inductees came from chapters like Israel, Enugu, Abuja, Cross River, Kaduna, and many local government areas in Akwa Ibom State.  This paper learnt that 99 persons picked the membership forms, filled, submitted and got screened but 14 persons could not scale through the screening process while 85 were successful.

Highlight of the event included taking of oath of membership by new members, Toast of Moho Mkparawa Ibibio proposed by Akparawa Okon Imerh, past international president, presentation of Silver Jubilee souvenir to members and guests, courtesy of Nassarawa Chapter, presentation of award to the best chapter (Onna) for parading the highest number of inductees and singing of Mboho anthem.  It was observed by the president that since Mboho started the  number of Silver Jubilee Class of new members was the highest.