INFLUENCE OF RURAL COMMUNICATION ON DEVELOPMENT

INFLUENCE OF RURAL COMMUNICATION ON DEVELOPMENT (A STUDY OF IBOTONG EWEME IN URUE OFFONG ORUKO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA)

INTRODUCTION

• Background of the Study

The new lexicon Webster’s/encyclopedia English dictionary describes ‘development as the act of developing a tract of land developed as a unit by public or private enterprise for residential or industrial purposes with the houses, factories, shops etc built on it.

That same dictionary also defines “development area” as an area suffering industrial decline and unemployment, where the government actively encourages greater industrial diversity.

From the above explanation, one now understands development as an “act of developing” and development area as an area suffering industrial decline and unemployment.

This research is going to see whether Urue Offong/Oruku community is developed or developing and not find out what is responsible.

Sometimes a lot of people misconstrue development to mean only availability of infrastructure without thinking of unemployment. Form the above definition, it is clearly stated that the society that unemployment prevails from under development as well.

So, development in the real sense, is a situation in which the society makes its people live under richer and better living conditions.

According to Udofia (1991), it is estimated that between 90-95 percent of Nigerians live in rural areas. Sometimes rural areas are vaguely define din terms of population and availability of indices of modern society such as electricity and pipe borne water etc. when there is death of infrastructure and communication  facilities in an area, that area is grossly undeveloped. In rural areas, many communication facilities are not provided to achieve effective commucnaiton within and outside the community. An example of such communities is Ibotong Eweme village.

In Ibotong Eweme, a borehole dug by the non-governmental organization had since ceased to function while the abandoned electricity project becomes a monumental failure in the eyes of the people. On the other hand, the rural people could not communicate effectively because of inadequate financial capacity to purchase and enjoy communication facilities such as television, radio, newspapers and micro generating sets to drive their electronic gadgets.

It is therefore, pertinent to note that socio-economic and political development of any society or community depends on how effective the community communicates within and outside its confines.

Ibotong Eweme villages is a village in southern Oron in Urue-offong/Oruko Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. The said local government is made up os sebene clans viz: Ukuko, Umume, Oyubia, Okossi, UrueOffong, Oruko and ureoffong/oruko local government area lies between Oron local government and Okobo crossing to uyo and Uyo locals government, Udung Uko, Uya Oro, Eket and Urue Offong/Oruko Local Government Area.

The people of Urueoffong/Oruko are really the Oron people of the old Oron nation but the people of Ibotong Eweme are believed to be of the semi Banty Stock who migrated from south-west Africa in their early movements and settled at Urueoffong/Oruko in the western urueoffong before migrating to the present Ibotong Eweme of the same local government area.

Essien (1993). Stated further that Ibotong Eweme people later left Ofi Okobo to settle in the present Ibotong Eweme village. Ibotong Eweme community like all other communities in Urueoffong Oruko local government area has the same ancestral root.

One may in the course of communication notice a slight difference in accent which depends also on who the closet neighbors is. Thus the communities in southern Urueoffong who are close to and intermingle with Oron town people have the accent typical that of Oron town. The northern Urueoffong communities  have their  accent blended with that Okobo with whom they socialize together and are neighbors too.

Central Urue Offong communities that socialize with Oron town dialect and the mainland accent keep their tone of Oron dialect intact. Ibotong Eweme community, had their way of communication long before the coming of Europeans. Their systems of traditional communication are categorized by Wilso (1987) as  follows:

1. Instrumental mode of communication
2. Demonstrative modem of communication

• Iconographic mode of communication

1. Extra mundane mode of communication
2. Visual mode of communication
3. Institutional mode of communication

All the modes outlines above have their respective ways of communication among to people

Instrumental Mode: This mode is identified with objects such as the wooden drum (Iwid), metal gong (wkwong), wooden block (Aworom), wooden gong (wtakorok), etc.

The various instruments belonging to this group communicate to the people in different situations. They are used in the dissemination of information to the people and for cultural entertainment.

Demonstrative mode: Instruments such as the wooden drums are in the demonstrative class. These drums can speak to the dancers who would then gyrate to convince the drummer and the evidence of their understanding of the message of the drum through their feedback.

Iconographic mode: Iconographic objects include young palm frond (Ajeyi), peacock feather (Ntang Akrukruk) etc. each of the two object has peculiar message to give.

The peacock’s feather is a status symbol in the area. Anybody seen with Ntang Akrukruk is highly regarded as being a member of wabor cult. The other a flora mode (Ajeyi) has multiple functions to perform ranging from being an instrument for peace settlement to traditional decoration.