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Home , Scouting, Scout Promise

THE ASSOCIATION OF

“: THE BEST WAY TO BRING UP GOOD LEADERS FOR OUR COUNTRY.”

A PAPER

PRESENTED BY

OMODOT TIMOTHY UMOH ANHQC YOUTH (SOUTH-SOUTH)

ON THE

ONE DAY SEMINAR/ END OF YEAR GET TOGETHER AT STATE SECONDARY COMMERCIAL SCHOOL OKOP ETO, IKOT EKPENE, AKWA IBOM STATE.

DECEMBER, 20 14 0

INTRODUCTION It is with joy that I stand here today to talk on this topic. I wish to thank the Almighty , the creator of Heaven and Earth for his mercies upon our lives. I also thank the organizers of this educative programme for their innovative ideas to impact in the lives of these young scouts.

When I was asked to present a paper on this day, I had encountered difficulties in choosing the topic before I finally arrived at this one “Scouting: The Best Way to Bring up Good Leaders for Our Country.” Which will correspond with the demand of the season, this, I mean the demand of choosing the next set of leaders in our different arms of Government (i.e the general elections). Scouting (or the Scout Movement) is a movement that aims to support young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society, with a strong focus on the outdoors and survival skills. During the first half of the 20th century, the movement grew to encompass three major age groups for boys (, Boy Scout, ) which is now divided into 4 groups (cub scout, boys scout, venture scouts and explorer scouts). In 1906 and 1907 Baden-Powell, a lieutenant general in the , wrote a book for boys about reconnaissance and scouting. Baden-Powell wrote (London, 1908), based on his earlier books about military scouting, with influence and support of Frederick Russell Burnham (Chief of Scouts in British Africa), of the Indians, William Alexander Smith of the Boys' Brigade, and his publisher Pearson. In the summer of 1907 Baden-Powell held a camp on in England to test ideas for his book. This camp and the publication of Scouting for Boys are generally regarded as the start of the Scout movement. The movement employs the , a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including , woodcraft, aquatics, , , and . Another widely recognized movement characteristic is the Scout , by intent hiding all differences of social standing in a country and making for equality, with and or comparable headwear. Distinctive uniform insignia include the fleur-de-lis and the trefoil, as well as badges and other patches. 1

According to Aletor (2010) in his book titled “Taiwo’s and Explained” summarized scouting to be:

♦ Education for life

♦ Open to all

♦ Fun, with a purpose

♦ A movement for young people

♦ A challenge for adults

♦ Voluntary

♦ Non-political, non-governmental

♦ Community driven

♦ International

♦ Protecting the environment while enabling sustainable agriculture

♦ Building a moral base and discipline in individuals

♦ Promoting health

♦ Supporting community development.

SCOUT METHOD

The Scout method is the principal method by which the Scouting organizations, boy and girl, operate their units. WOSM describes Scouting as "a voluntary nonpolitical educational movement for young people open to all without distinction of origin, race or creed, in accordance with the purpose, principles and method conceived by the Founder". It is the goal of Scouting "to contribute to the development of young people in achieving their full physical, intellectual, social and spiritual potentials as individuals, as responsible citizens and as members of their local, national and international communities.

The principles of Scouting describe a code of behavior for all members, and characterize the movement. The Scout method is a progressive system designed to achieve these goals, comprising seven elements: 2

♦ Law and Promise,

♦ Learning by doing,

♦ Team system,

♦ Symbolic framework,

♦ Personal progression,

♦ Nature, and

♦ Adult support.

The Scout Law and Promise embody the joint values of the Scouting movement worldwide, and bind all Scouting associations together. The emphasis on "learning by doing" provides experiences and hands-on orientation as a practical method of learning and building self- confidence. Small groups build unity, camaraderie, and a close-knit fraternal atmosphere. These experiences, along with an emphasis on trustworthiness and personal honor, help to develop responsibility, character, self-reliance, self-confidence, reliability, and readiness; which eventually lead to and . A program with a variety of progressive and attractive activities expands a Scout's horizon and bonds the Scout even more to the group. Activities and games provide an enjoyable way to develop skills such as dexterity. In an outdoor setting, they also provide contact with the natural environment. Since the birth of Scouting, Scouts worldwide have taken a Scout Promise to live up to ideals of the movement, and subscribe to the Scout Law. The form of the promise and laws have varied slightly by country and over time, but must fulfill the requirements of the WOSM to qualify a National Scout Association for membership. The , 'Be Prepared', has been used in various languages by millions of Scouts since 1907. Less well-known is the Scout Slogan, 'Do a good turn daily'.

INFLUENCE OF SCOUTING ON SOCIETY

After the inception of Scouting in the early 1900s, the movement has sometimes been taken part in social movements such as the civil rights struggle in the American South and in nationalist resistance movements in . Although scouting was introduced to Africa by British officials as a way to strengthen their rule, the values they based scouting on helped to challenge

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the legitimacy of British imperialism. Likewise, African Scouts used the Scout Law's principle that a Scout is a brother to all other Scouts to collectively claim full imperial

THE CORE VALUES IN SCOUTING

The Core values of Scouts are anchored on the scout promise and the scout laws which is the laid down binding code of conducts for members of the scout.

THE SCOUT PROMISE

On my honour

I promise that i will do my best

To do my duty to God and my country Nigeria

To help other people at all times

And to obey the scout law.

A scout promises on his honour to do three things which are

• To do your duty to God and your Country

• To help other people at all times

• To obey the scout law

The scout promise is a very serious commitment every scout make especially the statement “I will do my best” which implies that we must always try our best and not to give up in whatever we are doing. No wonder some of the scouts that are in leadership positions are always the best, (a typical example is His Excellency Chief Dr. Godswill Akpabio the Governor of Akwa Ibom State and Gov. Babatunde Fashola, The Governor of Lagos state). These two outstanding leaders in our country irrespective of party affiliation have recorded a very significant landmark in the history of these states.

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DUTY TO GOD AND COUNTRY

This is the spiritual and patriotic aspects of scouting respectively. Scouting encourages the practice of religious in every facet of their activity and scout troops are even established in churches and mosques. This part of scouting has given birth to the following groups in scouting: the International congress of catholic scouts (ICCS), International union of Muslim scouts (IUMS), etc. scouting does not support . In other words, a good scout is a good Christian, a good Muslim, a good Buddhist, etc. Though extremity is not tolerated in scouting, there is always room for each worshiper to practice it in his/her own way. The duty to our country is shown in the following ways: a scout must be loyal, patriotic, love his/her country, defend it, develop it and die for it if need be. These things sound somehow impossible to most of us because we feel that another man’s country is better than ours and we try to develop other countries with our own resources. No wonder some people try to abscond when they travel for . An American will do everything to defend his Country, is it the same way with a Nigerian? The answer is left for you to answer. Are you suffering from brain drain? The answer is still personal. A good scout should leave his country better than he met it and I thank God for the Two Governors I mentioned earlier for keeping to their scout promise.

DUTY TO OTHER PEOPLE

A good scout is known for the good turn he does to people and not for the extortion of money from people in the name of help. Are we still in the habit of doing good turn every day? Are we still using this slogan: a good scout does his good turn every day always think of others before himself? Or are we of the opinion that money answered all things. I have this to tell you from the holy book “whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me” let us go back to the habit of helping others and we shall lead the way to a better Nigeria.

OBEDIENCE TO THE SCOUT LAWS

What are the scout laws?

1. A scout honour is to be trusted

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2. A scout is loyal

3. A scout is helpful

4. A scout is friendly and brotherly

5. A scout is courteous

6. A scout is a friend to animals

7. A scout is obedient

8. A scout is cheerful

9. A scout is thrifty

10. A scout is clean in thought, words and deed

How many of us make these laws part of our lives?

How many of us are truthful to our promise as we recite in every scout meetings?

These are the things that will make us live an exemplary life style that will make other people come to us for mentoring and guidance.

Comment

Scouting is the best way to bring up good leaders for a better Nigeria but the following things in the field of scouting has to be tackled:

1. Pull him down syndrome must be stopped

2. Sectionalism has to be combated

3. We must help each other to stand well in our own little way

4. We must subject ourselves for training to able to function effectively

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5. We must combat corruption even in scouting

6. And finally we must leave our world better than we met it.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, I leave us with the last message of Lord Baden Powel which Says:

“ Dear Scouts, if you have ever seen the play ‘peter pan’, you will remember how the pirate chief was always making his dying speech because he was afraid that possibly when the time came for him to die he might not have time to get it off his chest. It is much the same with me, and so, although I am not at this moment dying, I shall be doing so one of this days and I want to send you a parting word of goodbye.

Remember, it is the last you will ever hear from me, so think it over. I have had a most happy life and I want each one of you to have as happy a life too.

I believe that God put us in this jolly world to be happy and enjoy life. The happiness doesn’t come from being rich, nor merely from being successful in your career, nor by self- indulgence. One step towards happiness is to make yourself healthy and strong while you are a boy, so that you can be useful and so can enjoy life when you are a man.

Nature study will show you how full of beautiful and wonderful things God has made the world for you to enjoy. Be contented with what you have got and make the best of it. Look on the bright side of things instead of the gloomy one.

But the real way to get happiness is by giving out happiness to other people. Try and leave this world a little better than you found it, and when your turn comes to die you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best.

‘be prepared’ in this way, to live happy and to die happy-stick to your scout promise always-even after you have ceased to be a boy and God help you to do it.”

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To justify the topic of this paper, I wish to say that the best set of leaders can only be brought up in the scouting way of training and I wish to summit that the best way to make our country a better one is to encourage the Scouting in our own little but significant areas of life.

Thank you for your audience. I wish you all a merry Christmas and a much fulfilled new year in Advance.

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