n all areas of life, self help protagonists exist and make a living through advising others how to do things themselves. In recent times we realized that the authors of First Things First invoke wisdom literature dating back as far as 2500 B.C. as a validation of their particular enumeration of fundamental human needs. In Classical Antiquity, the advice poetry of Hesiod, particularly his Works and Days, has been seen as an early adaptation of Near Eastern wisdom literature. The Stoics offered advice with a psychological flavor. The genre of mirror-of-princes writings, which has a long history in Islamic and Western Renaissance literature, represents a secular cognate of Biblical wisdom literature. Proverbs from many periods embody traditional moral and practical advice of diverse cultures.

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"Self-help" appears to have been first used in the legal context, according to American Psychological Association, referring to the doctrine that a party in a dispute has the right to use lawful means on their own initiative to remedy a wrong.

The term self-help or self-improvement can refer to any case or practice whereby an individual or a group attempts self-guided improvement -economically, intellectually, or emotionally-but refers most frequently to something with a substantial psychological or spiritual basis. The basis for self-help is often self-reliance, publicly available information, or support groups where people with similar problems join together. From early exemplars in self-driven legal practice and home-spun advice, the connotations of the phrase have spread and often apply particularly to the individual or to communities.

I will personally define self-help as the ability to do things for ones self independently or in community when there is a societal expectation that is not met in the ambient of its socio-eco-religio polarization.

In the light of the foregoing the Amaimo Community in the United States of America under the ebullient leadership of Dr Greg Uche decided to take the bull by the horn. They took a deep breath and reflected on the underdevelopment of their community by the prevailing political exigencies that exist in Nigeria and decided to write their name in the annals of history. The development projects so far initiated are a three pronged attack to reverse this trend to decay in a once prosperous community. The first angle of attack is through Scholarship. The community indigenes in Diaspora realized that the quest for education is the beginning of freedom and democracy. The second angle is that of security. A community where life and property are not valued cannot have a sustainable development. The third is that of Health through medical missions because without good health other aspects of life are no more enjoyable. There are many communities like Amaimo across the nation who were once very prosperous but now caught up in this developmental quagmire as perpetuated by subsequent corrupt and insensitive political leadership. The good news is that a whole lot of people in the Diasporas are now taking it upon themselves to help alleviate the sufferings of the masses in their towns of origin. This is good news. It is good news because when the literacy level of the masses is elevated then they will begin to agitate for their rights. History has proven that when this begins to happen, it creates a certain level of dissatisfaction with the status quo and may be the origins of a political revolution. This is what we need.

The cause taken by Amaimo people in America is a worthy enterprise by a group of well educated Americans of different professional attainments yet very aware of their cultural extraction, they are also aware that they are sojourners in a foreign land. This awareness by so many "westernized" people I must submit has become a new trend. This burning desire to institute an enabling environment that will uplift and create a better life for their people will bear fruit in no distant time to bring the needed change. The only constancy in life is change.

In the Third National Convention of Amaimo people in the US which was held in Houston Texas, USA on 12 July 2008, there was a reinforced desire by all to continue with the marshaled attack on revising the developmental decadence in the community. The occasion was well attended by Amaimo sons and daughters from all walks of life, from the bay of Boston, New York, California, Washington Metro Area, South Carolina, Colorado, Missouri, Florida to Texas, the home state of President George Bush. I personally drove 17 hours with my family from my new base in South Carolina to be part of this history. Three prominent sons of Amaimo from Nigeria also attended- Professor Placid Njoku, former Vice Chancellor of Federal University of Agriculture who was the guest speaker, our congressman, Hon. Chief Sam Anyanwu (aka Sam daddy) and Chief Dr. Vitalis Ajumbe ( Orikaeze), the State Chairman of ANPP in Imo State. A total of 45 families were present. This was pertinent for me because, for the first three years of my life in America, I never met any Amaimo person.

In their respective presentations, Chiefs Sam Anyanwu and Ajumbe reiterated their personal contributions to Amaimo community developments while serving in public offices and pledged their unalloyed support for all the initiatives that are being carried out. The most important aspect for them was the great reunion in spite of political affiliations.

Professor Njoku our distinguished guest speaker was emphatic on the premise that no community development can thrive outside of a rugged ragamuffin bond of unity. According to him, unity is the basis of all progress. He actually spoke on the basis of being the President of Amaimo Forum in Nigeria.

In this convention I learnt many indigenes of Amaimo have resorted to home and small business lending: they provide hundreds of naira in financing to market women in their home town through direct lending. This stems from the fact that they believe owing a business enables these families to send a child to the University, weather a financial crisis or save for future generations.

There are those engaged in facilities lending: they finance daycare centers and other nonprofits because a good education and a strong community are fundamental to the success of the community's economy.

Some have used their hard earned dollars to fund small business loans to widows, rural residents, and low-wealth families and even offer scholarships to deserving students especially those able to study medicine and other disciplines that have immediate impact on the community.

I wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to the President Dr Greg Uche, the indefatigable secretary, Dr Nkeiru Mbionwu (nee Anyanwu) and other members of the executive especially those of the Houston chapter who worked assiduously with Sir Chief Goody Abuachi, Professor Innocent Mbawuike, Mr Ferdinand Nwokedi etc to make the convention a huge success. Kudos to you all.