One by one, the Elders of the Ijaw Nation began to arrive in a meeting summoned at the instance of the Wise One. It was very rare for the Wise One to summon the Elders, and so when each got the message to appear before him, no one had to be told how grave it was to shun such an invitation. And so, all the Elders of Ijaw Nation had to put away their engagements to heed the call.

Finally, when it was presumed that everyone had been seated, an Elder stood up to address the gathering. “Fellow Elders of the Ijaw Nation, I greet you all. With the urgency of this meeting we should waste no time to address the pending issue at hand. When you see a rabbit running in broad daylight, you don't need someone to inform you that there is calamity! I suggest we get straight at it.”

Most of the Elders shook their heads in unison as another Elder stood up and spoke, “Yes, but when some persons begin to talk, you would think they are serious people looking for solutions, when in reality they are part of the problem makers.”

This remark instantly brought about a shouting match among the Elders, who by their sitting order clearly shows there were opposing factions in their midst. Some of the Elders, out of anger, were on the verge of exchanging blows but were restrained by their fellow colleagues. The atmosphere of anger and cursing continued for about five minutes while some of the Elders made frantic efforts to calm the stray nerves of those who were foaming with rage. Gradually, calmness returned.

Just then, the Wise One stood up to address the Elders. "Who is an Elder?" he asked no one in particular. There was a deafening silence. He looked around expecting a response but got none. He then continued, "My father used to tell me as a youth that what an Elder sees when sitting down, a youth cannot see even if he/she sits on top the tallest tree. But now, when I look at some of you, I begin to see why the Ijaw Nation has become what it presently is. Sad to say, we now have Elders who can no longer see beyond their noses when sitting down. In fact, some of our youths these days can see more than the Elders. What a shame!" he thundered in anger at the Elders.

"If a child misbehaves, we spank that child. But if an Elder misbehaves, what do we do? We rebuke that Elder. And if that Elder sees nothing wrong in his action, will rebuke work? Definitely not! Let me ask you all, what is the benefit of your Eldership to the Ijaw Nation? You all claim with pride to be Elders of the Ijaw Nation, but what have Ijaw Nation benefitted from your Eldership since you came of age? If most of your Eldership is right, will there be midnight at sunset across the Ijaw Nation? Will youths of the Ijaw Nation be in disarray? Will the communities of the Ijaw Nation be bombarded by security forces in disdain without any form of opposition? Will Ijaw people be killing themselves during election in the name of political parties? Will strangers take over positions that belongs to the Ijaw Nation? Will we have strangers coming into our houses and dictating to us what to do in our own backyard? Will opportunities be wasted on frivolities? Will there be so much disunity and hatred amongst the people and clans of the Ijaw Nation?

"As a father, if your son becomes a thief or your daughter turns prostitute, are you not a failure at fatherhood? O! You blame it on their mothers. But is the woman the head of the house? Likewise, don't you know that the Elders are the heads of the Ijaw Nation? Many of our sons have turned against our culture and have become robbers, taking what does not belong to them unto themselves; they have turned cultists, subjecting themselves to blood oaths and shedding the bloods of their kith and kin. Our daughters too have broken relationships, married women turning prostitutes, all are desperate for money!

"Some of you only become Elders of Ijaw Nation when opportunity rears its head. You use your Eldership position to sideline the youths and to even take from their portion unto yourselves. Some of you refuse to empower the youths thereby frustrating and pushing many of them into temptations. A father who fails to provide for his home, is he worthy to be honoured? Likewise, Elders who fail to play their Eldership roles in the Ijaw Nation, do they merit any award or honour?

"Some of you occupy multiple positions, only you one, whereas your sons and daughters are jobless. Some of you are busy running after contracts that your children should be the ones executing. You hold meetings with the executives of companies operating in your domains and make selfish demands from them. You hijack job slots and trade to strangers. You use the proceeds to marry wives and erect houses in strange lands. Some of you may amass money. Yes, you might build fancy houses, buy beautiful cars, boats, nice clothes and the other glamour of life but because you have failed to impact positively into the lives of the youths, you are nothing but failures, an embarrassment to the Ijaw Nation!

"Where are the Elders of Ijaw Nation? Are they not seeing what has befallen their children and the Nation? It seems your eyes are wide shut, open but cannot see, because of the desire for money and fame. And so, the truth is buried. Most of you have become selfish and greedy and are losing touch with the people on a daily basis.

“You may well be surprise while all these admonitions. I pity some of you. If only you have seen what I saw, right now you would all be trembling on your feet and would start making reparations on how to get your ways right before it is too late. Like the Prodigal Son, many of you are lost and I pray you are found. Even though the signs are ominous and are already upon you, some of you are still too daft to see or comprehend.”

The Elders began to whisper among themselves. From a state of anger, the Wise One suddenly looked gloomy, as he continued. "I have seen the future and it is very gloom. Whenever such is revealed it means there is a way out. And so I urge you all to reconsider your ways as this is a warning message. It happened in the not too distant future. The vision came to me last night. There was chaos across the Ijaw Nation. I saw little children chasing the Elders of the Ijaw Nation, who were running for their dear lives. I asked ‘what is this taboo? How can children subject their Elders to such maltreatment?’

"Just then, I saw some captured Elders being addressed by one of the children. He asked them, 'When the oil was flowing, what did you all do with the money you made from contracts you received from oil companies and the government? When the oil was flowing, what investment did you make from the oil wealth for the future generations? When the oil was flowing, what effort did you make to stop the despoliation and pollution of our lands so we can have our heritage sustained in the future?

'And now, the oil has stopped flowing and hunger is consuming us. The government and the companies have forgotten us. Moreover, the Nigeria of yesterday is no more as every tribe has gone to the tents of their ancestral lands. During your days, instead of you to unite for our common good, you were all divided for your selfish good. The youths borrow from your ways and divided they too have become. You shun truth and you want your children to abide by the truth? We are all ashamed of you!

‘Elders of other regions in the West and North used their position to build their zones, but what did you do? In what ways did you empower the youths? In what ways did you protect the region? In what ways did you use your influence to fight for the people? Now look at where we are. Look at all your fancy houses and possessions, how will this put food on the table of the youths? How will this bring back the glory we were told the Niger Delta was known for? How will all your possessions restore back our polluted habitats to their original state?’"

The Wise One looked at the Elders one last time and said, "I have delivered the message I was given. He who has ears, let him hear." With that he departed from the midst of the Elders into his hut. After about two minutes of silence he heard murmurings and then the arguments began all over again. The Wise One looked up as if he could see God and nodded his head sideways as if he meant to say, “Didn't I tell you?”

#mystorydiscourse