I am proud to have been a member of NUMOWCHIN for 10 years during which I rose from Patriot to Deputy Commandant of NUMOWCHIN. NUMOWCHIN was coordinated by CLTC and affiliated to Outward Bound International. Here, I share information pulled online about how Man O' War began in the year of my birth.
Some refer to Man O War Nigeria as club but it is more of an association divided into NUMOWCHIN and Community Based.
NUMOWCHIN:
COMMUNITY:
The Man o' war club started as an experiment in perseverance
and determination at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University). It
was an organisation established based on the principles of citizenship and
leadership training with the sole aim of building patriotic individuals to be
disciplined, independent and self-reliant. On an evening, March 31, 1973 Sasa
Ita Offiong Nsemoh and Ebiri Oteiri Okoro, two students of the University of
Ife resident at Ifewara campus, conceived the idea to establish a student
organisation which would enable other students to benefit from their vast knowledge
of teamwork, fitness and strategy as they had both participated as combatants
in the Biafran Army during the Nigerian Civil War (1967 - 1970).
Prior to the establishment of Man o' war club in University
of Ife, no University had previously attempted to establish such a student
organisation in line with the Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre. Far
back, in 1951, the Man o' war Bay had been established in Southern Cameroon
around Lake Victoria and Mount Cameroon by Alec Dickson based on the principles
of the Outward Bound School established at Britain ten years earlier. On the
shores of Lake Victoria a Man o war ship (which was used by the British Navy to
check slave trade in West Africa) anchored there, it is no surprise how the Man O' War Bay got its name as people who went to the school often referred to it by
the name. By April 1954, the first courses for school boys from the major
Secondary Schools in Nigeria were held by the Man O' War Training Centre at
Southern Cameroon. This triggered the establishment of Man o' war clubs in
various Secondary Schools by Student Participants who had benefitted from their
experience at Man o' war Bay.
In her book New Nigerians, Mora Dickson explained that by
1955, the Man o' war Bay had begun receive acceptability among Nigerian Youths
who had been inspired by the need for adventure and physical training. One of
the earliest schools where the Man O' war club was established was Hope Wadell
Training Institute at Calabar. Both Sasa Ita Nsemoh and Ebiri Oteiri Okoro had
attended the Hope Wadell Training Institute for their secondary education.
Ebiri Oteiri Okoro explained that during the period which he studied at Hope
Wadell Training Institute, he had been involved in many skills and activities
such as carpentry and wood carving which were made compulsory, camping and
tours which he undertook as a member of the Boys Scouts. However, membership of
the Man O' War club took his interest from certain other activities,
particularly the Boys Scout. He was also involved in a number of other physical
activities such as Kung-fu where he acquired a black belt. The Nigerian Civil
War, 1957 however interrupted his secondary education. At the age of 19,
following his enlistment into the Biafran Army, he was given the task of training
over 100 fighters in physical drills. Throughout the 30 Months war, he
distinguished himself as an excellent soldier and rose to the rank of
Substantive Captain of the Biafran Army. Following the end of the Nigerian
Civil War and his discharge from the Biafran Army effected by the signature of
Colonel Olusegun Obasanjo, the then GOC, 3 Marine Commando Division, he
returned to school to complete his secondary education.
By 1971, both He and Sasa graduated from the Hope Wadell Training Institute and got admitted to then University of Ife by 1972. It was the various experiences first as Man o' war members in the Hope Wadell Training Institute and as Combatants in the Biafran Army that inspired them to establish an organisation that would build youths -especially University Students- to be self-reliant, discipline and physical fit. The response of The Vice Chancellor, Professor Hezekiah Oluwasanmi was positive, he in fact immediately agreed to be the sponsoring authority of the Club. The Emir of Kano, the Ooni of Ife and the Obi of Onitsha also agreed to become Patrons and sponsoring authorities of the Club. And so by 5th May, 1973, the largest crowd ever seen around the campus during that period met and resolved to establish The Man O' War Club, University of Ife. That same Month, the Man O' War Club was registered by the Director of Student Affairs (DSA), Mr. Okunlola as a prominent student organisation within the school. The Club also got registered by the Citizenship and Leadership Directorate as a field arm of the Centre. By January 21, 1974, the Club was allocated a wide expanse of land for its training base, by the estate management of the school. Subsequent Vice Chancellors continued to render monetary and moral support to the Man o' war club, which was often regarded as the school's standing army. The Director of the Centre, R. A. Elegbe maintained a cordial relationship with the club throughout his tenure and even supplied membership badge and white crested vests to the club.
It did not take long for the Nigerian Army to start giving
logistic support to the Ife Man o' war Club. The 2nd Mechanized Division of the
Nigerian Army at Ibadan was of great support to the club and even suggested
that it become a Cadet Club which will be under the direct administration of
The Nigerian Army. Ebiri Oteiri Okoro, the Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) of the
club however disagreed to the recommendation.
Two individuals from The 2nd Mechanized Division of The
Nigerian Army are of significance, i.e. General Martins Adamu, the then GOC of
the Division, who by 1978 was said to have donated not less than 360 yards of
Army Green Khaki for clothing Man O' War Officers and also supplied vans and
buses to facilitate the Operation Know Your Country Tour (OKYC), and Colonel Anthony
Aboki Ochefu, the Provost Marshal of the Division was quoted by Ebiri Okoro to
have persistently rendered support to the club during its early years of
establishment.
With the establishment of Man o' war club at University of
Ife. Many other students at other universities were inspired to replicate same
in their cases of study. By 1976, another unit was established at University of
Lagos, Ado Bayero University in November, 1977 and University of Ibadan by
1984. Upon assumption of office as Chief Coordinator, Pat Oluwatudimu began
making consultations across various higher institutions with the aim of
establishing a body that would unify all Man o war clubs in higher institutions
of Nigeria. By 1981 with a total number of 20 representatives from various clubs,
the National Union of Man o war Clubs in Colleges and Higher Institutions of
Nigeria (NUMOWCHIN) was established with the general motive of fostering
friendship and cooperation among students of various higher institutions. Pat.
Ife Adewumi the then Commander in Chief at Man o' war club in University of
Ife, was elected as the first Supreme Commandant or National President of the
union. However, this union has continued to face various internal tensions and
reduced acceptability in the contemporary times. By 2000, efforts to reconcile
the aggrieved parties in NUMOWCHIN failed as the club at Auchi Polytechnic did
not follow due process in taking over the instrument and symbols of the union
from the club at the University of Jos(The agreed Headquarters). This action
has been described by many Statesmen and Man O War historians as the coup which
totally dismembered the NUMOWCHIN.
In recent times efforts have been made to revive the union.
In a Passing out Parade (POP) ceremony held at the Federal University of
Technology, Akure (FUTA) in 2006, the Chief Coordinators from the Man o war club
from the University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University and FUTA, all agreed
that it was necessary to make deliberate efforts to revive the NUMOWCHIN. On the
premise of this discussion, the NUMOWCHIN South West was birthed. Up until recent times various conventions have been held under this body with the sole
aim of uniting the various clubs within the region. Similar and simultaneous
efforts are also currently going on across the other Geopolitical zones in
Nigeria, all which are designed to serve as the precursors for unifying the
NUMOWCHIN on the national scale once again.
Pictures
1. L-R The Obi of Onitsha, Pat. Ebiri Oteiri Okoro and a
chief from the Obis palace
2. L-R A chief from the Oonis Palace, the late Ooni of Ife,
Oba Adesoji Aderemi receiving an award from R.A. Elegbe, the Director of the
CLTC during an Honours Parade.
3. LGS Ebiri Oteiri Okoro dressed fully in Biafran Army
uniform on arrival from the battle front where he narrowly missed some gun
shots to the head few days after the end of the war.
4.L-R Maj-General Martins Adamu, Patriot Ebiri Oteiri Okoro,
at the back is Patriot Sasa Ita Offiong and a military officer while inspecting
a guard of honour.
References
Obaba V. O.(2019), A History of the Man o war Club in
Nigerias Higher Institutions: Case Study of Obafemi Awolowo University,
Ile-Ife, Nigeria, 1973-2011.
The Pact (1977), Being the Constitution of the Man o war
Club, University of Ife, Ile-Ife
The Citizen (2015 edition)
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