Abuja, Nigeria — A new civic movement, ‘The Village Boys Movement’, has been formally unveiled in Abuja with a call for a national return to values of integrity, accountability, and productive enterprise in politics and governance.
Speaking at the unveiling, “National Village Headmaster,” Tochukwu Ezeoke, described the initiative as a nationwide disciplined movement built on “earned prosperity and service‑driven leadership”, and not proximity to power and affluence.
According to Ezeoke, the group positions itself as a moral alternative to what he termed the “City Boy culture” a political structure he said thrives on access to state resources and celebrates wealth without measurable productivity. “We represent a Nigeria that works before it earns, and earns before it spends,” he declared.
The movement’s guiding principles, he emphasized, rest on the belief that “wealth must follow value, power must follow service, and leadership must follow accountability.” Ezeoke faulted what he called a long‑standing culture of connecting personal success to proximity to government rather than innovation and enterprise.
“This is not hostility toward cities,” he clarified. “It is a moral contrast. The issue is not geography but the source of wealth, the ethics of leadership, and the structure of accountability.”
Citing former Anambra State governor Peter Obi as an example of disciplined governance, the movement praised the former governor’s record of fiscal prudence and transparent administration. Ezeoke stressed that the group’s support for Obi reflects their endorsement of a standard, not hero worship. “He is not a messiah. Nigeria does not require a savior figure. Nigeria requires standards,” he said.
Unveiling the movement’s motto “Unbought. UnAfraid. Unstoppable.”, Ezeoke explained that it symbolizes citizen empowerment and resistance to vote‑buying, intimidation, and patronage politics.
He announced plans for a nationwide Two Million Man March in all the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory in the coming weeks. The marches, he said, would be peaceful, lawful, and self‑funded. “They will be powered by conviction, organized by volunteers, and sustained by citizens who are Unbought, UnAfraid, and Unstoppable,” he stated.
According to Ezeoke, the Village Boys Movement will organize networks “village by village, ward by ward, polling unit by polling unit,” focusing on civic education, budget oversight, and election integrity.
He ended his address with a call to the Nigerian youth: “If you refuse to sell your vote, you are Unbought. If you refuse to be intimidated, you are UnAfraid. If you organize lawfully and consistently, you are Unstoppable.”
The Village Boys Movement, Ezeoke concluded, aims to transform Nigeria’s political culture from one of patronage to one of productivity and ethical governance.
