25/06/2026
A VALEDICTORY SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE IMMEDIATE PAST CONVENER, OMEN BASSEY DURING THE SWEARING-IN OF ENGR. OKON BASSEY AS CONVENER, ORO NATION LEADERSHIP ROUNDTABLE (OLR) ON MONDAY JUNE 22, 2026 AT OBA EVENT CENTRE, EWET HOUSING ESTATE, UYO.
PROTOCOL
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
In 2016, I was privileged to serve simultaneously as Publicity Secretary, Oron Union and Secretary, Oro Think Tank (OTT), taking over directly from our erudite Professor Okon Eminue.
This was the immediate aftermath of the 2015 gubernatorial struggle, when the Oro spirit was at its lowest ebb. The epic struggle had fortuitously produced several social media activists from Oro, including me.
As I assumed these strategic positions, I saw some critical needs. The membership recruitment process of Oro Think Tank had left out almost all the intellectually vibrant young persons of Oro extraction who were desirous of contributing to community development through a formal service structure. Incidentally, I didn't have the wherewithal to change the rules. Oron Union, on the other hand was contending with increasingly expanding responsibilities, which seemed to cause the relegation of education - one of the original objectives for its establishment and the main focus of the founding fathers.
So, in that vantage position, I began to envision an organisation of Oro young intellectuals, which would operate as the Youth Wing of Oro Think Tank while prioritizing both advocacy and hands-on measures in promoting academic excellence in Oro Nation.
Suddenly, on 19th January, 2017, the defection of Senator Nelson Efiong from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) was announced. This generated serious debates on social media with some known friends of Oro extraction, engaging themselves in arguments, either for or against the defection.
I was disturbed by the fact that supposed friends could disagree publicly on Facebook. On Friday January 20, 2017, I invited some young intellectuals of Oro origin for a meeting in my office at 19 Udi Street, Uyo. In my speech at the meeting, I said several things but looking back, one sentence stood out: "If we are friends, won't it be better for us to debate on a Roundtable than argue on social media?" That meeting and the speech led to the establishment of what was initially called Oro Nation Leadership and Business Roundtable on Friday January 20, 2017. The organisation discarded "business" from its name in 2020 when the Corporate Affairs Commission(CAC) approved Oro Nation Leadership Roundtable.
THE ENGAGEMENTS BEGAN
As stated earlier, the outcome of the 2014 gubernatorial primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was perhaps the lowest moment in the history of Oro Nation. The aftermath was a time of despair, mistrust, accusations and counter accusations. I was privileged to be with the youths while enjoying a robust relationship with key Oro leaders, such as Ikpoto Okon Osung, Arc. Otu Ita Toyo, Chief Edet Nkpubre, Dr Emmanuel Ekuwem and Dr. Efiong Edunam. I knew and understood the perspectives and the struggles of the elders more than my fellow youths.
I felt strongly that to move forward, Oro needed to bury the ghost of 2015. That was how the nascent Oro Nation Leadership and Business Roundtable convened its first elaborate session on May 17, 2017 in Oro Civic Centre with the theme "Re-examining Oro's Place In Akwa Ibom Politics: The Past, the Present and The Future". It was a gathering of almost all the major actors in Oro politics. It was also an opportunity for most of the youths to listen to some of the major actors in Oro politics and get them to offer some clarifications on certain contentious issues that bordered on the politics of their ethnic group. Of course, certain misconceptions were corrected and misinformation addressed.
Impressed with the outcome of the first Roundtable session, a few months later, the then Commissioner for Transport, Hon. Orman Esin, who was in attendance transferred One Hundred Thousand Naira (N100,000) to me as his support. That was the money we used to organise the First Edition of the Science Quiz Competition on November 23, 2017 where His Excellency, Sir (Dr) Etim Uye and Late Mr Okon Bassey Etienam were honoured. The quiz competition was subsequently re-christened Sir Etim Uye Science Quiz Competition and held on July 8 every year to commemorate the birthday of this intellectual collosus and icon of community service. The 6th edition will be held on July 8, 2026.
After holding several Roundtable sessions, mostly in Uyo, we decided to turn our attention to the improvement of the quality of education in Oro Nation. On 23rd November, 2021, we held the first ever and hugely successful Oro Education Summit with the theme "Re-inventing Oro Through Quality Education". The Summit gave birth to what is now our flagship programme, the Holidays Mentoring Programme which commenced in 2022 and will be holding its 4th edition between August and September this year. Our Education Week, where our members and volunteers went round all public and some private secondary schools in Oro Nation held between Monday 4 and Friday July 8, 2022. The Ikpoto Okon Osung Undergraduates Essay Competition, which started in 2020 will soon advertise its 6th edition. We've also introduced the Senator Akon Eyakenyi Girl-Child Speech Competition.
On 12th November, 2022, Oro Nation Leadership Roundtable facilitated scholarships and projects assistance for eleven undergraduates of Oro extraction.
On Thursday and Friday May 13 and 14, 2021, we organised a free 2-Day Business Clinic where certain important entrepreneurial skills, such as how to write business plans were taught to business owners in Oro Nation.
It's been nine years of denying ourselves to mentor the next generation. Personally, leading the Roundtable for nine years in addition to my personal endeavours stretched me almost to the limits. Leaving the next generation to wallow in ignorance and end it avoidable failure, despite being hugely talented is too serious a misfortune for any excuse, no matter how seemingly tenable to be acceptable.
As I stand here today, I feel fulfilled that in nine years, I held nothing back in serving Oro and humanity through the Roundtable. Like my colleagues, I gave my money, time, talents, sometimes, dignity for this cause. In fact, I gave myself.
Sincerely, the dividends have been quick in coming through the several young people who occasionally accost us either physically or online, narrating how the activities of the Roundtable helped them find their paths and pursue goals they would have ignored.
Today, I am handing over a very united, formidable and close-knit family. I am handing over an organisation which has scored excellent in transparency, accountability, selflessness, commitment and sacrifice.
Luckily, I am handing over to a man who laboured sacrificially with me; a man who understands service and a man of unparalleled humility. I have always been driven by the conviction that the Roundtable is a divine project. The membership of Engr. Okon Bassey, his appointment as Chairman, Welfare Committee and the mark he made there; his subsequent ascendancy to the position of Deputy Convener and his unanimous emergence as Convener on February 28 and the events that followed have further convinced me that this is God's work.
Permit me to add that while we were building, the Tobiahs and Sanballats were also actively at work, taking every opportunity to attempt to diminish the stature of the organisation by always telling members it was Omen's thing. If Oro Nation Leadership Roundtable is Omen's thing, it means Oron Union belongs to Late Chief Anwana Esin and his three friends.
Thank God not everyone is gullible. The glorious era of the Roundtable is just about to unfold, not for anybody's bragging rights but for more impactful service to our community.
The most unique thing about the Roundtable is its membership recruitment process and inherent self-purging mechanism which ensures that unserious people aren't admitted and those who backslide are thrown out, not by anyone but the rules we have all subscribed to.
I will not end this speech without acknowledging our Chairman, Board of Trustees, Barr. Antai Efiong whose intervention revived this organisation in 2020 and whose leadership has kept it strong till date. I am also grateful to the Vice Chairman, Elder (Dr) Etim Joseph Inwang and all Trustees whose contributions have propelled us to this height.
I am also using Ikpoto Okon Osung, Mr Effiong Esumo, Chief Asuquo Eyo Antai and Chief (Engr) Nseobong Essang to appreciate all our patrons for remaining pillars of support these past nine years.
Very specially, I acknowledge my mother, Her Excellency, Senator (Dr) Akon Eyakenyi, the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, the Member representing Oron federal constituency, Rep. Martins Esin and the Executive Chairman, Urue Offong/Oruko Local Government Council, Rt. Hon. (Amb.) Chief Uno Etim Uno for their support and encouragement.
To all my great colleagues on the Roundtable, believe me, you are both special and spectacular. For nine years, you stood with me through thick and thin to build a great and enviable institution. Believe me when I say "I love all of you."
I am grateful to the Chairman on this occasion, Dr Emmanuel Ekuwem for remaining a source of inspiration and for everything he has done for me.
To the detractors who expected to see the end of Oro Nation Leadership Roundtable, thank you for pushing us to prove you wrong and continue in your endless and futile wait for bad news.
Without God, there would be no Roundtable, no member, no Convener, no money and definitely, no swearing-in. To Him who works in us, both to will and to do His good pleasure, I reserve the ultimate acknowledgement and I dedicate the future of this great institution.
As I handover to my bosom friend, trusted ally and dependable colleague, my promise is to remain active without interference, to serve like every other member and to sustain the commitment of the past nine years, not as the Convener but as someone who understands authority.
Thank you.
