He completed his primary school education at Warri, passed and
obtained
his standard six first School Leaving Certificate
in 1922. In consequence of his excellent performance Agori was
appointed a teacher in that School in 1923.
To have passed the First School Leaving Certificate so well in 1922
and be appointed a teacher in his alma mater was a feat on the part of
Agori Iwe.
For, according to Rev. J.O. Binitie even in the 1930’s only
four Schools were in Warri: Government School; C.M.S. School; African Church School; and Roman Catholic Mission School. “And”, says Binitie,
“a regular feature of the First School Leaving Certificate
Examination at the time, was like the West African Coast, where many
[Europeans] went and only a few returned” (J.O. Biniti, Interviewed at Warri,
16 Dec. 1969).
In 1924 Agori was selected and sent to St. Andrew’s College Oyo
to be trained as a grade II Teacher and a Catechist. The first two
years 1924 and 1925 were devoted to his training as a school teacher,
while 1926 and 1927 were devoted to theological training. When he came
out, he was in 1928 appointed a pioneer school teacher in Urhobo
church District.
Having worked in the Urhobo church District from 1928 till1937, he
was sent to St. Paul’s Training College Awka to do an ordination course after which
he was ordained a deacon in 1938. He served his curacy in
Eastern Nigeria at St. Simeon’s Anglican
Church Nnobi, in Newi District, under Rev. H. Oggi. He was here until
1940 when, after he had been priested, he was sent back to Urhoboland.
He was placed in charge of Urhobo C.M.S. churches as superintendent in
1942. At that same time he became Manager of C.M.S. schools in
Urhoboland, working under the general supervision of Archdeacon W.E.
Burne who was at the time based in Warri. By 1947, the population of
St. Luke’s Otovwodo, had so increased, that Agori decided that
the School be this purpose, he secured a piece of land measuring one
mile square from His royal Higness Ohaisi II, the Ovie of Ughelli (see
M.E. Opharomavua, “Bishop Agori Iwe…” A Long
Essay for Bendel State University, 1985, p.9).
The land acquired by Agori Iwe for the C.M.S. (later, Anglican)
Church, was part of the Aghwar’ode (Bas Bush) of
Ughelli, where those who died in the strange circumstances were
buried. The C.M.S. parsonage, later named
St. John’s
parsonage, was built there, by Agori. According to the witness of
Agori’s widow Mrs. Ruth O. Agori (Interviewed, 9
Jan. 1988) when the movement from Otovwodo to Ovwodawanre was to be
undertaken, many people warned Agori about it, and discourage the
movement because, as mentioned above, the place was part of the
Awharodo of Ughelli. But Agori defied those warnings
and moved the headquarters from Otovwodo to Ovwodawanre. Many of the
trees, according to Agori’s widow, were felled by Agori himself,
and because he had a double barrel and was a hunter, he shot at owls
which infested the new station, and through their hooting instilled
fear on the members of the Agori house hold, which were the first set
of human beings to live in Ovwodawanre, after the movement there of
the C.M.S. headquarters in 1947. The school children of St.
Luke’s primary school, (including the present writer) were from
time to time employed to up-root storms, and work on the new school
ground to create a foot ball field and other pay grounds for the
school.
As a result of the nature of Ovwodawanre, as Ughelli Bad bush,
demonic spirits as aziza
were frequently encountered. Mrs. Ruth Agori Iwe recalled an instance
when
aziza carried one Native
Authority school teacher, who lived at Ovwodawanre, to the burial
ground in the bush at night. The following morning, a search party had
to be despatched into the bush to search for him until he was found
sitting alone at the burial ground (cemetery). We cannot agree more
with Agori’s widow that it was by God’s name and power
that her husband was able to move the C.M.S. station from Otovwodo and
establish it a Ovwodaware, a place which,
as at the time of writing has become the Headquarters of Warri
Diocese, where the Bishopscourt is built. Agori served in training in
St. Aiden’s College, Birkinghead,
Liverpool, England. When he returned from
Britain
in 1950, Agori was again posted to Igboland. He was placed in charge
of Enugu Church District until December 1951. In 1952 he was sent back
to Urhobo as Superintendent of the Urhobo District Church Council. He
occupied this position until 1954 when he was appointed Archdeacon of
Warri Archdeaconry.