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European Journal of Educational Studies 3(1), 2011
European Journal of Educational Studies 3(1), 2011
ISSN 1946-6331
© 2011 Ozean Publication
USING COUNSELLING AND BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION TO CURB CULTISM IN
HIGHER INSTITUTIONS OF LEARNING
E.O OSAKINLE* and B.A FALANA
Department of Guidance and Counselling, Faculty of Education
University of Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria
*E-mail address for correspondence: funmiosakinle@yahoo.com
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Abstract: The study examined the genealogy and prevalence of secret cult activities in tertiary institutions of
Nigeria. Also, the study examined the ways by which counselling and behaviour modification could be used to
reduce the tide of cultism pervading tertiary institutions in Nigeria.The study gave some reasons why students from
cult groups; which include search for security, social identity, respect and diffusion of frustration from family
among others. These cult activities have caused a lot of bane; this is done in the destruction of private and public
properties, distruptions of academic activities in schools, massive killing of innocent individuals and a host of other
problems.To reduce cult activities on our campuses, assertive training techniques and systematic dissentisation and
cognitive strategies will need to be put in place. The paper concludes that counsellors in tertiary institutions have
arduous roles to perform by organising frequently and periodically orientation programmes for students old and
new, staff members to reduce emotional conflicts in schools. Also that counsellors should work in close relationship
with student affairs and other service units of the institution to facilitate conducive environment of learning. School
management should make their e-mail address available to students for necessary information and proper action to
be taken on problems bewildering students on campus.
Key words: Cultism, Behaviour modification, Counselling, Reinforcement, Modelling, Assertive training.
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INTRODUCTION
All over the world, from the universities to the polytechnics, colleges of education and other tertiary institutions and
some secondary schools, come stories of violence, tortures and unwanted intimidation executed by members of
secret cults. Common observations reveals that many Nigeria newspaper and magazines have becomes bulletin
boards for reporting daily exploits of members of secret cults. Unfortunately, despite all efforts to tackle the
problems, secret cult activities in the institution have defile all solution, this paper attempts to use counselling and
behaviour modification strategies to curb secret cult activities in our institutions.
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WHAT IS A SECRET CULT
The Oxford Concise Dictionary of Sociology (1996) gives the anthropological definition of a “cult” as “a set of
practices and beliefs of a group in relation to a local god”. It also gives a sociological definition of it as a small
group or religious activists whose beliefs are typically secrete, esoteric and individualistic. Ogunbameru (1997)
defines a secret cult as an organisation whose activities are kept away from the knowledge of others. These
activities are essentially covert, disguised and are usually carried out behind closed doors (Aguda 1997). Also
Chambers 21 st Century Dictionary (1999) defined secret cult as something which is popular and regarded as
particularly significant by a certain group of people: a fashion, craze or fad. Oxford advanced Learners dictionary
defines cultism as a system of religious worship especially one that is expressed in rituals. From the foregoing
definitions, it is safe to define a secret cult as a group of people whose activities are carried out in exclusive
locations and unusual times without being exposed to the uninitiated.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SECRET CULT IN NIGERIA HIGHER INSTITUTIONS
The secret cult phenomenon is not new in Africa. As Aguda (1997) has observed, activities of secret cults like,
human leopards and human crocodiles, have been recorded in Central Africa. In Nigeria, secret cults have always
existed in many parts of the country. Among the Yorubas of the southwest can be found the Ogboni Secret Cult.
Among the Efiks of the Southeastern part of Nigeria can be found the Ekpe Secret Cult (Adelola 1997). The Ekine
Cult is to be found in the Delta region, the Edo of the Midwest have the Owegbe Cult, just to mention a few.
Membership of these secret cults provides sources of status, economic, social and political security, to their
adherents.
The origin of the secret cults in the Nigeria universities can be traced back to the Pyrates Confraternity, also
known as National Association of Sea Dogs, that was founded at the University College, Ibadan (now called the
University of Ibadan), in 1953 when the institution was still a satellite campus of the University of London. It has
the skull and crossbones as its logo.
The Seadog Confraternity was similar to the numerous fraternities and sororities, which are so ubiquitous in many
America universities and colleges both membership requirements and activities. In the United States, the fraternities
and sororities are sometimes called Greek Clubs because of there Greek names and symbols. The Greek clubs
promote, among other things, moral uprightness, patriotism, community service and high academic and intellectual
standards.
The Pyrates Confraternity at the University College, Ibadan, was formed by the first Africa Nobel Laureate,
Professor Wole Soyinka and a few others popularly known as G7. The original aims of the association were very
lofty and noble. They aimed at producing future Nigeria leaders who would be very proud of their Africa heritage.
Thus, the Pyrates Confraternity aimed at abolishing convention (Thomas 2002). It also wanted to revive the age of
chivalry. As Thomas further asserts, the Confraternity boasted of the cleanest, the brightest and the most politically
conscious among the students.
The nascent groups which were formed from the sea dogs regarded the pyrates as rather elitist whose campaigns had
outlived their usefulness (Owoeye 1997). The protestant groups which sprang up from the Pyrates Confraternity
included Black eye, Vikings, Bucaneers, Mafia, Dragons, Black Beret and others. The female cults include Temple
of Eden, Frigrates, Barracudas, Daughters of Jezebel and others. Today in Nigeria, there is hardly any tertiary
institution which has not suffered the adverse effects of the activities of secret cults which have been characterized
by violence.
REASONS FOR JOINING CULTIST GROUPS
Students are attracted to cultist groups for a variety of reasons. Such as
Search for responsibility: Some students join cult groups in order to perform certain services for the members.
For example to fight perceived injustice in their campuses against their members.
Search for satisfaction of ones aspirations and needs: For example, a student may belong to a cult group whose
part of their objective is to ensure high success of her members in academic examinations.
Search for security: Many students, especially the females join cult groups for protection. Some male students
join to secure their girl friends.
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European Journal of Educational Studies 3(1), 2011
Search for social identity: There are also students who join cult group to be popular. They want to be regarded
as powerful people, for them, it is a way of achieving prestige and greatness. It is their belief that they could
influence decisions on campus that they could dictate the pace during Students Union Elections.
Search for respect and recognition and to acquire protect against sanction from members of the community.
There are others who join cults because they want to create avenue to exhibit and the diffuse frustration from the
family, the school and the society. There students who join cult groups for reason of wealth (financial assistance)
while others join cults to hide their weaknesses (inferior complex, academics or social). Some are force to join
while others feel that the objectives of the cults are laudable and worthwhile.
CAUSES OF CULTISM IN NIGERIA INSTITUTIONS OF LEARNING
Cultism is an anti-social behaviour which is a deviant act. It is at variance with the established norms of behaviour.
It is a non-conforming behaviour which usually contravenes the social rules of an institution in particular and the
society in general.
In spite of the negative consequences of cultism, it still strives. Some factors responsible for these are:
(1) Parental and home background: Student’s participation in cult activities may be influenced by parent’s
involvement in similar activities. Parents who are members of secret cults will not see anything wrong in their
children’s involvement in cultism. Parents may encourage their children to join cults so that they may maintain the
traditional titles that have been given to them (that is parents). Children from broken homes may also find solace in
cultism. A home that is characterised by child abuse, intolerance, violence, insecurity and hostility may be a
breeding ground for prospective cult members.
(2) The society: The Nigerian adult society is materialistic. There is the mad ambition for wealth and power. Some
powerful members of the society sometimes unleash terror on the other members of the society. Some of them
recruit young adults to perpetrate heinous crimes in the society and can erase the long arms of the law. They are the
fraudsters, kidnappers, ritual murderers, etc. children who grow up in this kind of environment may see nothing
wrong in cult activities that involve maiming and killing of innocent people. “Godfathers” who are ready to protect
cultists from prosecution sponsor cult activities.
(3) Emotional sickness: Children who have emotional sickness tend to be frustrated and fed up with life. In an
attempt to express their anger against neglect, they may join cults to unleash terror on the society that has caused
emotional distress. Some children are possessed by the demon. Those children can grow up to become criminals
because of the evil spirit in them.
(4) Peer Group Influence: Motivation for joining cults may come from peer group’s influence. Some students have
become cultist because their friends are members. The members of the peer group influence one another wit the
experiences they have had in their various families and environments.
(5) Support Given By Staff of Educational Institutions: In some institutions, certain administrator and lecturers are
members of secret cults. The student cultists are used against other members of the community to promote selfish
interests. There are allegations that some Vice Chancellors were sponsoring cult activities in their universities to
silence the voice of dissent.
(6) Government’s Lukewarm Attitude: Cultist in our educational institutions watch how government officials break
law the laws of the land with impunity because they are members of secret cults. Government also fails to apply
sanctions against cultists who contravene the laws of the land because of the protection offered by those who are
close to the corridors of power. Cultists are therefore given the impression that they can go away with any acts of
lawlessness.
(7) Un-conducive Learning Environment: Learning facilities provided in educational institutions are grossly
inadequate to the extent that some students cannot cope academically. Because of the craze for certificates, such
intellectually weak students join cults to harass lecturers and administrators so that they can be given undeserved
marks.
(8) Inadequate Religious and Moral Instructions/Education: Some parents have abandoned their responsibility in the
area of moral upbringing of their children because of the craze for material wealth. They hardly show interest in the
progress of their children at school. Such parents rarely attend parents’ forum meetings. Educational institutions
teach Islamic and Christian Religious studies for students to pass examination without emphasizing the moral
lessons that can be learnt from such topics. The heart of the young ones therefore left for the devil to manipulate.
Some religious leaders are not showing good examples to the younger generation.
(9) Administrative Style of Institutional Administrators: A number of institutional administrators are autocratic and
maintain hostile relationship with staff and students. They hardly involve the members of the community in
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decision-making thereby promoting rumour mongering. They ban student unionism at will. This atmosphere
promotes violence and cult activities because peaceful resolution of conflicts has been made absolutely impossible.
Some institutions maintain boarding facilities but administrators rarely find time to know what is going on in these
hostels. They don’t monitor students and staff activities.
(10) Mass Media: The mass media also expose our young ones to all kinds of negative behaviour. There is the
importation of magical films, occultism literature and obscene behaviour. Advertisements are made in the media on
how youths and adults can join occultism organisation both locally and abroad.
(11) Inadequate Welfare Programmers for Students: Our educational institutions have inadequate basic
amenities like accommodation, transportation, recreational facilities, to mention a few. Students are therefore
encouraged to join violent groups like secret cults that wreck havoc in these institutions because of the insecurity of
government and institutional administrators to their (students’) plight. The factors discussed above are not
exhaustive.
ACTIVITIES/CONSEQUENCES OF CULTISM
The nefarious and nocturnal activities of secret cults have also led to the untimely death of cultists and innocent
students and staffs/lecturers of our institutions of higher learning. Cult groups have gradually turned the campuses of
Nigerian institutions of learning into killing fields – theatres of war. Here are some samples of both students and
lecturers that have been killed as a result of cultism:
September, 2005, Bolaji Tomiwa, a student of the Lagos State University was killed
October 2003, Three students – Kehinde Dosumu, Omotayo Suraju and Olalekan Ajao of Kwara State
polytechnic, were killed.
June, 2005 Gbenga Joseph, a policeman and leader of Anti-cult squad of Kwara State Police command was
killed by suspected cultists from Federal Polytechnic, Offa.
March 2005, Ashifat Olatunji Saheed, a student of Ibadan Polytechnic, Ibadan was murdered.
On Tuesday, March 2004, Vincent Uloho of University of Benin, Benin was killed in cold blood.
February 2004, Yomi Edeki of University of Benin, was killed.
November 12, 2003, Tony Ileogbuna, acting Head of Geology at the Enugu State University of Science and
Technology was murdered.
July 10, 1999, five students of Obafemi Awolowo University were killed.
July, 2004 Wale Adeyori and Banji of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, were killed.
June 6, 2006, Alhaja Fatimo – 400 level Economic student was killed in University of Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria.
Again, some members of cult groups are caused bodily harm that may result to physical injuries and or death
especially during their initiation ceremonies. Closely related to this, is the fact that some of them risk health
problems because of harmful drugs they take.
Moreover, some cultists have their educational career terminated abruptly (expulsion or rustication) or they may
spend more than the required number of years for graduation. For example, on March 27, 2005, a 32 year old
Ikechukwu Okomah Anthony was arrested. He had spent over ten years pursuing Higher National Diploma in the
Department of Estate Management, Ibadan Polytechnic.
More importantly, cult activities may disrupt the academic calendar of the nations’ institutions of learning. The
Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, generally regarded as the hot-bed of cultism, was closed for 10 months by the
then Lucky Igbinedion in the year 2000 for the purpose of sanitizing the university.
Before and during examinations, students are always organising night vigil and prayers for a successful end of
exams and or semester. They always sleep with one eye closed.
Cult activities are no longer secret or done in the dark. They now operate in the public – under the full glare of the
public.
Therefore, we want to see how behaviour modification and counselling can help on curbing cultism in our higher
institutions. In so much as guidance and counselling like education is concerned with the all-round development of
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European Journal of Educational Studies 3(1), 2011
the student. Cultism as earlier mentioned is a deviant behaviour. And the broad defined objectives of counselling is
to help the client/student achieve self-understanding; to help individual towards overcoming obstacles to their
personal growth and development wherever these may be encountered and towards achieving development of their
personal resources. Thus the resultant effort is the individual having a balanced personality.
By training, the Counsellor is equipped to devise several preventive and constructive programmes for dealing with
maladaptive or deviant behaviours and for inculcating those values outlined in the NPE (FRN 2004), section 1;
subsection 3 as follows:
1. respect for the worth and dignity of the individuals
2. faith in man’s ability to make rational decisions
3. moral and spiritual values in inter-personal and human relations;
4. shared responsibility for the common good of society;
5. respect for the dignity of labour; and
6. promotion of the emotional, physical and psychological health of all children.
Basic Principles of Behaviour Modifications
Most clients do not describe their difficulties in much simple straightforward language. Most cannot specify what
behaviour they desire. They are usually confused and uncertain. Can a behaviour modifier help a client who does not
know what he wants or who is confused
One of the most exciting characteristics of behaviour modification is its capacity for successfully resolving the
highly complex problems of clients. The counsellor begins by listening carefully to the client’s concerns. The
counsellor tries to understand and assess the client’s thoughts and feelings. He first tries to see things from the client
and attempts to determine if he is accurately perceiving the clients thoughts and feelings.
The basic principles on which behaviour modification revolves are:
(1) All behaviours are learned by conditioning in the environment. Learning is inferred from a subject’s behaviour.
(2) Behaviour is a function of the interaction of hereditary and environmental variables.
(3) Maladaptive behaviour is learned and can be unlearned according to the same principles as adaptive behaviour.
Changes in behaviour can be brought by systematic and gradually introduced changes in the environment.
(4) Behaviour modifiers are concerned with specific, precise and current problems.
(5) A number of techniques can be applied in behaviour modification; such as, reinforcement, modelling, role-play
stimulation and counter-conditioning.
To conclude, therefore, the school counsellor should:
1. Show films on repercussions of cultism and other anti-social behaviour such as exam malpractice, sexual
immorality, robbery etc and giving opportunity for former victims to give testimonies.
2. Encourage students to expose any secret, unauthorised group meetings of students as this could lay the
foundation to secret cult formation.
3. Organise and execute orientation programmes (every semester) for the new and old students pointing out the
dangers/evils inherent in their membership of secret cults.
4. To assist students and staff/lecturers in better understanding of themselves and emotional conflict that impact
their lives, to offer effective means of coping with personal problems and to assist them in effectively pursuing their
positive goals.
5. Working in close relationship with the students’ affairs as well as other service units of the institutions to
facilitate conducive environment for learning.
6. Counsel parents/guardians and seek their cooperation in certain areas as it affects their children and wards,
7. Organise at least once in a semester, students – Vice Chancellor/Rector/Provost forum where we have
opportunities for students to dialogue on their problems in public; and
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8. The management could make their email addresses open to students for necessary information and necessary
actions from time to time.
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