By Josef Omorontionmwa

AFTER the very successful carnival organized by the Resident Youth Association, RYA, Oregbeni Housing Estate, Benin City, at which this writer was a Guest Speaker, it has become clear that the good life begins from the grassroots. The Oregbeni Community is situated at Ikpoba Hill on the Eastern flank of Benin City. A community that was once at the outskirts of Benin City in the Greater Oredo Municipality is today at the centre of Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area. The very interesting history of this community shall be left for another day.

What we find in the paragraphs that follow is a synopsis of the address provided at the peak of the carnival on 30 December 2014. To the extent that this address is adaptable to every locale in Nigeria and beyond, it is intended for youths everywhere.

Elsewhere, the view is popularly held that the young shall grow. But at Oregbeni, the young have grown. Our youths have outgrown us. Quite often, wisdom consists in being able to acknowledge the efforts of the young ones who are doing what we have not been able to do.

“For five years running, you have successfully organized this annual carnival. This year, you moved the carnival to a much higher level by partnering with some reputable organizations that exist within the Estate. This innovation is worthy of commendation.

This year’s carnival has been so perfectly organized that it surpasses most of those special centres where we go in search of fun, at very high costs, in America and Europe.

Oregbeni is a land of promise. It has grown in excellence as it has grown in size. In the beginning, this Estate was so detached from Benin City that not many were prepared to buy the superior houses provided by the Bendel Development and Property Authority, BDPA.

At the industrial level, this Estate stands out as perhaps the only one in Nigeria, if not worldwide, that has two breweries. Yes, for some time now, one of the breweries brews profits while the other brews fraud.

During the Lucky Igbinedion-led Administration, this Estate was home to two civil Commissioners – the then Commissioner for Health, the late Barrister/Pharmacist Godwin Oviagele and then Commissioner for Information, Hon. Chris Agbowanegbe.

At the very peak of academics in this country, perhaps unknown to the powers-that-be, there is a school in the Estate that makes Edo State proud – the Oregbeni Estate School. Until quite recently, when education went awry at the Federal level, this school consistently produced at least two students for the Federal Government Academy for gifted children! This is a height of excellence, which no other school in the State has achieved.

It is instructive that at Oregbeni, what started as a police post in 1985 is today a full-blown Police Division. That is growth in size and excellence.

Years ago, when we allocated land to a young and up-coming civil servant to build his own house, little did we know that he was going to blossom into the Number One Civil Servant in the State. Today, that Civil Servant, Mr. Jerry Obazele, is the Head of Service, Edo State and he is one of us.

Similarly, very many people who grew up in this Estate are making waves across the world in various endeavours.

Our prediction is that some time, some day, the Governor of this great State will be from the Oregbeni Housing Estate. Can we make it? Yes, we can. Let your motto be “Aim high and work hard”.

This definitely puts a big burden on you, the youth. We are quickly reminded of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) who advised that “The heights which great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight; but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upwards in the night”.

You can attain the lofty heights that God has carved out for you but not by playing football all day in this arena, thereby breaking people’s louvers and destroying their roofs; but by working hard. Football is good but whereas it cannot make all of you great, hard work can.
Cultism is evil and it must be shunned by all means! The Supreme Law of the land, the Constitution, as well as all the decent religions of the world forbid it. As we approach the 2015 elections, you must be determined to redirect your energy towards productive ends and refuse to be used as thugs to disrupt the elections.

You must continue to be your brothers’ keepers. A few criminal elements still live in this Estate. These criminal elements are not spirits but human beings. You must constantly fish them out so that the Estate will remain peaceful for all of us.
Whereas youths in other areas are fighting and killing themselves over land, here you are, very peaceful. There is no land to sell, anyway. Maybe government should return to that era where it participated actively in providing housing to the citizenry instead of abandoning everyone to the heartless Shylocks.

Did I hear you say that times are hard? That is probably an understatement. Times are really tough. But remember that when the going gets tough, only the tough get going. The challenge posed by Ralph Emerson (1803-1882) has not been settled to finality: “Can anyone remember when times were not hard and money not scare?”

Do not be weighed down by the problems of unemployment. I have discovered from very early in life that the best time to acquire more education is during periods of unemployment. Even in the worst of times, no education is useless. Between regular university degrees and wayside diplomas, I have more than a dozen “cardboards” that will never come near regular employment. You must imbibe the reading habit because the moment a man stops reading, he stops thinking. As we approach the New Year, you must remain resilient and take heart for change is on the way.

Once more, congratulation in this year’s most successful outing”.