Teaching Fundamentals in “Rough Terrain”
On 1 December, 2016, I began an introductory class in Re-evaluation Counselling in Bomadi, in Delta State, in the Niger Delta region of south Nigeria.
Bomadi is an Ijaw Creek town that is notorious for militancy and home to the alleged leader of the Niger Delta Avengers, a militant group. Almost all the youth, male or female, are “ex-militants.” Many of them are easily provoked, perpetually angry, and ready to kill. I guess the reason is that despite being oil rich, the area is predominantly poor. The major occupations are bunkering, fishing, and producing a local gin commonly called ogogoro. There’s only one access road. Transportation is mainly by boat and canoe. The area seems to be neglected by the government.
I have been in this region for three months and have never thought of organizing a Community of RCers here. I have figured it was rough terrain for my kind of work.
However, a chat with a fellow RCer convinced me I could do it. I began to think that in addition to being rational in my dealings with the people, I could give them the opportunity to use the tool of RC.
So today I started a fundamentals class with just one person. We agreed to make it a regular thing until he gets a good grasp of it. We also agreed to reach out to more persons in the area. It will soon be my pleasure to host some Nigerian leaders at an introductory workshop. You may expect to see some military personnel and ex-militants among the participants. Don’t get scared!
Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria
(Present Time 187, April 2017)