I have been bombarded with so much messages and calls in the past few days by well meaning people trying to know the exact situation in Mopa. I am putting this piece out due to that, so that others can see it.
To all right thinking humans, an organization that has existed for 81 years must have some peculiar ways of conducting its affairs in civilized manners.
I write about our ancestral heritage the Mopa Welfare Society and the unfortunate drama surrounding her. In my attempt to put this shocking drama in right perspectives the words of the famous Greek dramatist Aeschylus comes to mind that “In war, truth is the first casualty.”
The Mopa Welfare Society is a legally registered entity that operates an independent constitution which spells out how her affairs must be conducted. The association have a Board of Trustee headed by a Chattered Accountant that retired as Bursar from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Chief Dr. Ayo Ishola. Other members of the Board include Chief RB Abe a retired Permanent Secretary and first Sole Administrator of Mopamuro Local Government. Chief Michael Aiyenigba a 91 years old man that retired from Nigerian Defence Corporation. Prof. Theophilus Aro. Prof. Grace Fadupin. Rev (Dr) Ola Daniyan a man that served as President of CAN Kogi State Chapter. Deaconess Bello a seasoned Nurse that practised in the UK before returning to serve in Nigeria. Elder S Adeyemo a retired Federal Civil Servant and Oba SK Olujide.
Qualification to the board is only by service to the society and by virtue of being a past branch Chairman or a National President.
The challenge that brought about the charade election started when the National Executive of Mopa Welfare Society kick started preparations for Mopa Day 2024 and sent notification to Mopa Traditional Council but received oral message from Mopa Traditional Council that the Mopa Day event has been cancelled until another date. When the message was communicated to the BOT, the BOT demanded for a letter from MTC to that effect but this was not done. The BOT sent delegations three times but were unable to reach an understanding . Meanwhile the planning committee already wrote letters as customary to churches and mosques, families and individuals. They already printed Invitation cards and has gone far in the printing of the event program.
The Board members that visited the Elulu were told that if they insist on going ahead, their security cannot be guaranteed because the message that has been sent to them is an Executive order and not a suggestion.
It will interest you to note that one of the reasons that the Mopa Traditional Council gave through the Elulu is that he cannot work with me so I must be removed as President of Mopa Welfare Society…,
When the BOT met on on the traditional date of their annual meeting which precedes the Annual General Meeting it was resolved that the MWS constitution has been violated. The active branches had already sent message that since there wont be Mopa Day as enshrined in our constitution they will not come for any AGM and advised that all events should be postponed. Based on this painful decisions the Board announced that all activities be suspended since the Traditional Council announced that Mopa Day will not be held as usual and the branches wont be coming, to the extent that none of them sent in their usual annual development contributions.
As for the election that was held as been announced, there is an age long procedure for the election of National Executives which still subsist as backed by our constitution. Delegates from active branches that finances the activities of the society are the ones that are constitutionally saddled with such task as supervised by the Board. Whoever emerges from the process would be presented by the Board and sworn in on Mopa Day.
The above is not the case currently. What they did on Friday had no single branch delegate. Even the home branch Chairman who wanted to contest for position before did not attend with some of his Executives on hearing the decision of the BOT. People that were not financial members of the society and had never attended the meetings of the society were sponsored to come out in large numbers to vote. The most painful part of this is that many members of the Traditional Council came to attend and sat all through which has never happened. They only come for Mopa day in the past.
As matter stand now, the BOT are still insisting that the status quo ante must be respected meaning the election held is null and void. There are plans to forcefully seized the secretariat break into my office and do whatever they like. They hAve also been adding up people to a parallel Mopa Welfare Society watsApp platform to rival the one created some years back under the leadership of Elder Luke Bamidele.
It is very important that I put out this message for so many well meaning Mopa people across the world to know the true situation of things and work to curtail the crisis that this kind of crude acts can degenerate into.
Thank you.
– Chief Samuel Elere
