PH Mundial – Port Harcourt Online Newspaper News Across The Region
Related Articles
By Young Erhiurhoro
The name Peter Maison has made a lot of ‘Echoes in the Dark’ over the years in the reformation and restructuring of community leadership in Unenurhie community, Evwreni kingdom in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State and other communities across Nigeria. In modern parlance, Mr. Maison can be described as a social crusader and political activist whose areas of struggle and human liberation majorly centre on fairness, equity and justice for all people irrespective of the social class or political group they belong to.
His other areas of focus are freedom, sovereignty and autonomy for his people from an age-long oppressive leadership championed by a political class induced with pride, arrogance, oppression, autocracy and selfishness.
Interestingly, Mr. Maison’s echoes are no longer in the dark, but have torn the veil into two parts, allowing the ‘Light’ to creep into the community in very high intensity.
His political ideas and thoughts of justice, fairness, equity, sovereignty, freedom and autonomy have really removed so many people, especially the youths from the dark and ignorance and have given them the light to lead them through the right path.
It’s now I believe that, when somebody is really kept in the dark for a very long time, by the time he is released into the light, he would still think he is in the dark. This is just the mentality and understanding of some of the people Mr. Maison had released from the dark of oppressive leadership and political strangulation and slavery.
Without doubt, he has shown the old and true definition of leadership, which is far different, and better than the present and new definition of leadership and leaders that so many people are running after in both community and government circles, and which has become established as: The Nigerian political system.
The old and true meaning of leadership is defined as service to the people and not service to self. This old and true definition of leadership was in application and in operation during the colonial and pre-independence periods in many Urhobo and Isoko communities. It was then that leaders were seen as service providers to the led, rather than service seekers from the led.
This concept of leadership also extended to the post-independence period, from 1960 to early 80s, before it was killed and buried in our communities as a result of corruption to pacify and satisfy the ugly ‘Self’.
In this period under review, community leadership was a heavy load which mean and ordinary people can’t just carry on their heads. People that were chosen to bear the burden of leadership in our various communities were people that were naturally endowed with leadership traits. Without even the help of a prophet or seer, once you see these people, you see the qualities and virtues of leadership in them. They were born with such traits and virtues. Another significant and remarkable part of this old definition of leadership was that, those to be leaders never sold themselves to the masses to be selected as the practice today by the so-called leaders, but the masses begged them to be their leaders except hereditary monarchies.
It was in this period too that, “development unions” came into existence in different ethnic groups and communities across Nigeria. This was as a result of the acquisition of formal education on the part of our people which led to civilization and westernization that made them elites of the time in Urhobo land. For instance, late Mukoro Mowoe of Evwreni kingdom and some other Urhobo educated elites came together to form, the Urhobo Brotherly Society which later changed to today Urhobo Progress Union, the apex socio-cultural organization of the Urhobo people. The UPU is today the mouth piece of the Urhobo people in both internal and external issues confronting the Urhobo people and their territories.
In fact, so many of these development unions or organizations came up at this period in various communities across Urhobo and Isoko. The major objective or purpose of all these development unions in relation to the old and true definition of leadership was to serve the people selflessly without expecting any other reward apart from “thank you” from the people. Happily enough, many of these development unions in the various communities embarked on different projects with communal efforts especially building of town halls and establishing scholarship funds to train deserving children of the community in higher education. Community leaders under this period done so many remarkable things to their praises and honour. Many had left their footprints on the sand of time in the historical records of such tribes and communities. For instance, until the end of this present system of things, the name of Mukoro Mowoe can’t be forgotten in whole of Urhobo land. It’s the same to some other tribes and communities across the country. Such selfless leaders are what we termed as, “celebrities of leadership”.
Without mincing words, this is the kind of leadership that Mr. Peter Maison has brought to Unenurhie community in recent years. Like what I earlier said, Mr. Peter Maison has brought back the old and true meaning of leadership to his people and his community. He’s a man that the Unenurhie people and even people from neighbouring communities of Evwreni, Uwheru and Enhwe are describing as “the light” of our present generation. Yes, these encomiums and praises are not just coming to him, but they are coming to him as a result of his physical and significant achievements he has made just the few years he took over the mantle of leadership in Unenurhie community.
Truly, a good name is better than riches. There is no doubt about this wise and divine saying. Mr. Peter Maison had laid a good foundation and created a new form of leadership in the community like that of old in Unenurhie community especially from the 1970s to early 90s. His late father, Chief Maison Okpovwia was a name to remember and reckon with in Unenurhie community. He was a leader that fought for the unity and progress of Unenurhie people. The Unenurhie people can’t forget his name so easily in the annals of history. His name can’t be wiped out from the historical records of Unenurhie people. Mr. Peter Maison however took the same steps of his late father to do more than his late father to his Unenurhie people. His name is on the lips of the young and old people in Unenurhie people, clamouring that, he should be a lifetime president-general of the community.
Even though the truth is bitter, it’s better we say it in order to create an egalitarian society where the poor masses can have a say in the leadership and administration of their own community, than to die in slavery and servitude because of the fear of intimidations and oppressive tendencies from perceived leaders. Far from the Nigerian way of electioneering and politicking induced with much political gimmicks and fake promises, Mr. Peter Maison’s political ideologies are quite different. His results and achievements in the leadership are in the community for everybody to see. His is very prudent and accountable for every action and step he takes in running the administration. His financial management from both internal and external revenues accruing to the community are second to none. What about his pragmatic approach to resolve inter and intra communal issues? In fact, Mr. Peter Maison is a peacemaker and a pacesetter. He has made the inter communal relationship between Unenurhie community and other neighbouring communities to be stronger and peaceful in his time as the president-general.
Very importantly, Mr. Peter Maison is a man that so much believes in his dreams and political ideas as a visionary and selfless leader of the Unenurhie people. He’s a kind of leader that every community in Urhobo and Isoko are clamouring for to be their leader. His is humble in disposition and always happy looking in all diverse situations and conditions, no matter the challenges along his ways to success and breakthrough. He never wants to be honoured and respected as a demi-god or godfather as the case with many present community leaders in both Urhobo and Isoko lands. His top most priority is to cater for the needs of his people before attending to his own needs and those of his immediate family. He’s always sleepless whenever there is a problem in the community. Not until he provides a solution to such a problem, his mind won’t be at peace. This is why Mr. Peter Maison is so dear and rich to the Unenurhie people and other communities around.
However, I want to end this article by bringing out two articulated questions about this man and his style of leadership in his community. One, can Unenurhie community sustain this new order and new form of leadership as established by Mr. Peter Maison to continue from generation to generation without going back to that evil and demonic kind of leadership? Secondly, can other community leaders in Urhobo and Isoko communities emulate the style of leadership of Mr. Peter Maison to also bring the needed changes and reformation to their communities?
On this note, I want to drop my pen to leave the answers of the first question to Unenurhie people especially the youths of the community who are described as the “leaders of tomorrow” to provide the answer in views or counter views to my opinions and views expressed in this article. And the second question I left to many of Urhobo and Isoko community leaders to provide answers also in views or counter views on my shared opinions on the subject of discussion.
Young Erhiurhoro; Kjc is a reporter and a member of the Urhobo Historical Society.
