By Young E. Freeborn, Warri
October 3, 2023 marked four years since the Urhobo Renaissance Society (URS) was established to champion the course of promoting the Urhobo culture, and to raise the economic status of the Urhobo people, as the fifth largest ethnic group in Nigeria.
To mark the event, one of the administrators of the group, Mr. Rume Ophi spoke to our correspondent in his office over the four-year journey.
Hear him: “My dedicated service as an administrator of the URS Facebook group hasn’t been an easy journey, but by God’s grace, I’ve kept my focus. The journey began in 2019 when I traveled to Delta State for the inaugural URS conference at the PTI conference center in Effurun. After the conference, I was referred to volunteer and manage the social media image of the group on Facebook. Given my keen interest in Urhobo affairs, I jumped on the opportunity.
“As some of today’s youth would say, “How much are they paying you?” I started receiving messages from potential volunteers, asking about pay. I would just laugh it off. Life extends beyond immediate gains in certain activities. I have encountered all sorts of people on this platform: professionals, politicians, businesspeople, students, tech enthusiasts, and even family members. The job has made me to know a lot of people and to also face many challenges as well.”
Mr. Ophi said, “You would be intrigued to know that because of this platform, I’ve educated more Urhobo people about Cryptocurrency than any other tribe in Nigeria. Although my lifestyle largely revolves round Urhobo. My electrician is Urhobo from Emadadja, the shop where I get frozen foods is owned by an Ughelli woman, and even the barber shop I visit is owned by a gentleman from Oghara.
“Discipline plays a significant role in all of these. My parents are incredibly disciplined individuals. Otherwise, I might have been led astray. At times, I’ve felt that Urhobo mothers should be a bit strict in training their children. Perhaps it’s because in my environment, mothers from the early ’80s took discipline as their daily bread. This is why I believe family is crucial to society,” he said.
Mr. Ophi further expressed gratitude to Professor Hope O’Rukevbe Eghagha, one of the founding fathers of the Urhobo Renaissance Society, for his guidance and advice on seeing things from a different perspective, and also to have great love for his people and how to promote and protect the Urhobo culture from extinction.
