The Peoples Club of Nigeria International was formed in 1971 in Aba (present Abia state of Nigeria) by a small group of individuals led by Chief Titus I. Ume-Ezeoke. It was formed with the spirit of uniting people of like-minds, for social interaction. The formation was timely and extensively welcomed because of the Club’s founding principle which reads “be your brother’s Keeper” and was also embodied in its motto: Unity, Love, and Service.
This was at a period of hopelessness following the devastation of the Nigerian civil war which ended in 1970. Peoples Club was founded when it mattered most, at a time when Ndigbo lost faith when they felt abandoned, raped, maimed and ravaged by the civil war, when they had no iota of hope, when the experience and remembrance of war nearly extinguished a race and people, it was birthed. It wasn’t founded only to socialize, but also to help heal the wounds of the challenging times of the post-war era.
The club later moved its headquarters to Onitsha, Anambra State of Nigeria. Since its formation, the Club has grown extensively and could be found in most major cities in the world. By the year 2000, there was a branch of the Peoples Club in every major city in Nigeria.
Location of Nigeria in Africa
The Founder: Chief Titus Ike Ume-Ezeoke
Chief Titus Ike Ume-Ezeoke, Onyima of Amichi, was the founder of the Peoples Club of Nigeria. He was the younger brother of Sir Georfry Ume-Ezeoke, former Accountant General of Old Anambra State, and the elder brother of Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke, former Speaker of the Federal Republic of Nigeria under Shagari in 1979. They were direct sons of HRH Igwe Peter Umeorimili Ezeoke of Amichi, the Paramount Obi of Amichi.
Read also: The All African Peoples Conference
After the civil war, his business and that of his friends went down. One of the days he was lounging with Chief Umeohamadike Obieze, Azukaenyi of Unubi and his friends in Aba in 1971, the thought to form the Club came as a way to socialize and help themselves heal from the wounds of the civil war, coupled with the pain of receiving only 20 pounds from the Federal Government as palliatives to build back their multi-thousands and million businesses.
Okaa Society of Nigeria existed before the Peoples Club, but it was extinguished during the civil War. Some of their members died during the war. Okaa Society of Nigeria was mostly young well-to-do Igbo traders who found a common purpose to meddle together and built a fraternity. it died during the war and hope was lost. it’s important to note that Peoples Club built the generation of wealthy Igbo Men and beyond who transformed to what we see today.
Chief Titus Ike Ume-Ezeoke retired as the founder and Patron in March 1983. He was the first National President of the Peoples Club of Nigeria, he handed over to Dr. Chukwuma Obioha, Akajiugo of Arondizuogu as the second National President.
In the words of our revered Founder, the Late Prince Sir, Titus Ume-Ezeoke, Peoples Club of Nigeria is a club of hope and promise, with defined aims and objectives. It was established to enable members create recreational centers for them to relax and ease out tension after the day’s work. These founding fathers were visionary leaders who were held, and should have been held in high esteem by all and sundry, if some of them were not carried away by their personal selfish desires.
People's Club of Nigeria
Peoples Club International
Peoples club of Nigeria awarded the first international Branch to Houston, Texas in 1997. The founding fathers of Houston branch held their first meeting on September 5, 1987. Under the leadership of Chief, Iheanyi Aguocha.
Read also: Genetic diversity insights from Cameroon, Congo, and Bantu groups.
Membership is open to all, irrespective of race, religion, tribe, sex or social status. Peoples Club of Nigeria grew in leaps and bounds in the 70s and 80s in Nigeria with the establishment of 22 branches.
Peoples Club Protocol
Everything in Peoples club follows a certain formality and etiquette. Perhaps more than anything else, it is what separates Peoples Club from every other organization out there. It is what gives it, it’s distinct flavor and elevates it above all other organization of it’s kind. Peoples Club membership is about respect for each other, recognition for each other and adherence to a strict code of social ethics and decorum. Peoples club is about class, elegance and nobility, in the pursuit of happiness.
From the pageantry and ovation of simple entrance of members, to sitting arrangements, to the way they talk and when they talk, Peoples club members exude enthusiasm, orderliness and discipline. They have a superior sense of hierarchy, procedure and comportment. In Peoples club there is no hurry.
Logo of Peoples Club International Arlington
The Misconceptions
A lot of people think that it is a club for only the rich. Some have described it as a club of ostentatious people. It has even been characterised as a secret society. All the above could not be further from the truth. PCNI Arlington is a very special branch of Peoples club. We are non-profit, non-political and non-partisan. Our Membership is open to anyone that meets our basic requirement. We have resolved to go back to the founding principles of People club of Nigeria. Our membership is made up of reputable, honorable people who have achieved success in their chosen fields and are unapologetic about celebrating their prosperity, in a congenial environment and in the spirit of unity, love & fraternity.
Read also: Is Agadir Beach Club Worth It?
PCNI Arlington is not a club for the rich. There are lots of rich people that have been rejected for membership to PCNI-Arlington. It is however, a club for the successful. Membership has it’s obligations. PCNI Arlington does not have Ostentatious members. Contrary to some belief, Peoples Club is not a secret society.
The People's Union: An Earlier Social Movement in Lagos
The People's Union was an association in Lagos, Nigeria created in 1908 to promote the welfare of the city's residents regardless of race or religion. Its leaders included educated and traditional elites. An early goal was to stop a project to bring piped water into the city. All residents would pay taxes to cover the costs, but the wealthy Europeans and Africans with piped houses would be the main beneficiaries. The union lost popular support when the educated elites accepted a compromise on the water project in 1915.
Under governor Walter Egerton a proposal for a system of piped water in Lagos was submitted to the Legislative Council in 1907, with the cost to be covered by direct taxation of the city's residents. The project was opposed by the majority of residents because of the tax component. Water was already freely available from the lagoon and from wells. The People's Union wrote to the Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1915 asking that the piped water project be suspended during the war. In September 1923 the first elections were held for the Legislative Council.
Popular articles:
tags: #Nigeria
