Politics
THE Abuja branch of the Okpe Union, a Delta based socio-cultural organisation, has called for concerted efforts to preserve Nigeria’s values and cultural heritage.
The President of the branch, Mr Wilson Awhensebe, made the call at the 2024 Okpe Day and 94th anniversary celebrations of the union in Abuja on Sunday.
“As a thriving socio-cultural organisation, we remain committed to the preservation of our rich cultural heritage, customs and traditions handed down to us by our founding fathers.
“We are, however, concerned about the erosion of cultural and moral values in today’s modern society, hence, we believe in promotion and preservation of our culture, ethics and values.
“As steps towards addressing the moral crisis and challenges in society. This is part of the reason we celebrate Okpe day,” he said.
He explained that the day was celebrated to showcase our rich cultural heritage and values which was deeply cherished and guard jealously.
Awhensebe commended Federal Government’s policy on teaching of indigenous languages in schools in every local government area in the country.
He appealed to President Bola Tinubu to mandate the Ministry of Education to put modalities in place and to work with state governments to ensure speedy implementation of the policy.
According to him, this will go a long way to resuscitate learning and communication in local languages and prevent indigenous language from going into extinction.
Awhensebe also called on the Federal Government to prioritise reviving the Sapele, Warri and Koko ports in Delta.
He said reviving the ports would help to decongest the gridlock at the Apapa Port in Lagos State while boosting the economy of not just Delta, but the Niger Delta region and the nation at large.
He commended government’s ongoing efforts at rehabilitating portions of the Abuja-Lokoja-Auchi-Benin-Warri federal highways which had been in deplorable condition for many years.
The branch president appealed to the Minister of Works, Mr Dave Umahi to ensure speedy execution of the contracts for the federal highways for the comfort of citizens plying the roads.
Awhensebe, equally tasked the Federal Ministry of Transportation to commerce work on the Itakpe-Abuja rail line which he said had the potential to boost socio-economic activities along the corridors of the Abuja-Itakpe-Warri area.
He further appealed to government at all levels to provide the enabling environment for citizens to thrive in their endeavours through the provision of basic amenities and infrastructures.
The Union’s Secretary Mr Mitaire Ikpen, while speaking with newsmen on the sideline of the event, said its essence was to showcase the rich cultural heritage of Okpe kingdom in Delta.
Ikpen said the celebration was also to foster unity and patriotism among the people while preserving the rich cultural heritage of the kingdom.
“The essence of the day is to showcase and promote the rich cultural heritage of the Okpe people to ensure it is not eroded by modernity.
“As we celebrate our day and culture, it fosters among us a sense of belonging, unity and commitment to patriotic ideals,” he said.
Also, Chief Bright Igbako, the pioneer Secretary of National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) said members of Okpe kingdom were historically children of same father.
He said the 94th anniversary was an opportunity for the Okpe people to celebrate themselves and to throw more light on their activities and culture.
“Every opportunity we have to emphasise our identity, we seize it to let the world know we are playing our part in the affairs of Delta and Nigeria,” Igbako stressed. (NAN).
9th JUNE, 2024.
C.E.
Tags: Okpe Union
