Chairman's Introductory Statement

I am delighted to introduce to you Iko Udama Club. The Club was founded in 2015 as a social Club that is primarily concerned about the welfare and growth of its members and the development of the Igala Nation.
To achieve this aim, unity is being fostered among members through meetings, visitations, social engagements which include attendance of leadership seminars that will prepare our members for leadership roles in Igala land, Kogi State and Nigeria.

Our Stand on Nigeria Politics

Recent happenings in our native state of Kogi have clearly shown that we have lost political dominance of the state. The circumstances that led to power shift in 2016 is still fresh and all efforts at returning things to status quo has not yielded any result because the efforts itself has not been coherent. There's no platform that has clearly articulated a roadmap at taking us back to our pride of place in the politics of the state. At the state level Igalas have been relegated. To buttress the fact that visibility at the national level is a product of vibrant and robust local politics, Igalas are entirely not visible at the national level. Never in the history of Nigeria have we been this relegated. Pre and immediate post-colonial Nigeria census put Igala as the ninth largest tribe in the country. This position reflected in all social, political and economic considerations of successive governments in Nigeria until recently.

From the foregoing, it has become imperative for us as a people to take a hard and serious look at our position in Kogi State and of Nigeria, our country from which ever group we find ourselves. This is especially so, now that non state actors have taken over the space, becoming more visible, aggressive and the mouth piece of their respective ethnic nationalities. For example, you have the Ohaneze, Massop speaking for the Igbos, Afenifere speaking for the Yorubas, Northern elders Forum/ACF speaking for the Hausas, Ijaw Youth Council speaking for the Ijaws. Who will speak for the Igalas? It behoves on us to nurture a platform that will articulate and advance the interest of Igala people.

There was the urgent need to structure and strengthen any social, socio-political or economic platform that we find ourselves. Iko Udama Club can be so structured and strengthened that it could play a tangible role in the socio-political lives of our people. That also will be in furtherance of our core objectives which centres on the advancement of the welfare of our members and their families and the development of Igala land.

Social Engagements

Our ongoing developmental efforts in Igala Land are:

Ongoing-1 • The Club has printed about 1,500 customized exercise books for distribution and has Chosen the Public Primary Schools in Idah Local Government Area of Kogi State as a pilot scheme. The best pupils from each of the public schools would be selected and given the exercise books.

Ongoing-2 • The Club has decided to select three (3) best primary four pupils of public schools from each of the Igala speaking Local Governments of Kogi State for sponsorship. The Club intends to pursue and achieve this objective through a competitive examination for the best three pupils from each public primary school in the nine (9) Local Government Areas of Kogi East Senatorial District of Kogi State namely: Idah, Ankpa, Bassa, Dekina, Ibaji, Igalamela-Odolu, Ofu, Olamaboro and Omala. The Club is very confident that this project will give brilliant but indigent pupils the platform to achieve their dream and in turn contribute to the greatness of Igala land.

Latest Projects

SELECTION OF 3 PUPILS FROM EACH LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN KOGI EAST FOR SCHOLARSHIP

All pupils in PUBLIC school currently in primary 5 in your local government that took 1^st position in their last primary 4 terminal examinations in their various schools only are qualified to write.