As the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) continues its one year long events to commemorate its 40 years anniversary, the train moved to Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, penultimate week. Edozie Udeze was there to report on the series of literary jamborees that set the city on joyous mood to celebrate both the young and the old literary offerings in the Niger Delta and beyond.
IT was the turn of Bayelsa State recently to host members of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) as it continues its ten cities tour to honour ANA at 40. Yenagoa, the state capital suddenly woke up to the total awareness of literary discussions, celebrations and rhythms as authors, old and young, secondary and tertiary school students gathered inside the expansive hall of the Faculty of Law, Niger Delta University, Yenagoa campus, for the show. It was a two day event which witnessed pomp, pageantry, rendition of spoken words, the assessment of mode of writing, both of the old and of the new.
Indeed the theme of the literary jamboree was simple: ‘New writing in the Niger Delta and the imperative of standards’. To open the day’s business, some teachers, young poets, students of the Federal University Otuoke and those of the Niger Delta University, Amasoma were on hand to render some stimulating spoken word poetry. Most of the renditions hovered around the problems of the Niger Delta people, on issues that trouble the soul of a nation. Part of the programmes also was a visit to the traditional ruler of Tombia town, Chief C.A.O. Otobotekere, an author, and one of the strongest pillars of ANA in the state.
The joy in the hearts of Bayelsans knew no bounds. They considered it a privileged honour to be among the foremost ten cities to celebrate this epoch-making event. The shows will eventually climax with an international conference in Abuja towards the end of the year. According to Murphy Biriabebe, the chairman of ANA, Bayelsa State, “there is no way Nigerian authors, nay Nigerian intelligentsia can forget the robust contributions Niger Delta authors have made and continue to make towards the growth and development of African literature”.
Biriabebe singled out Gabriel Okara, J.P Clark and Otobotekere for mention. “Therefore it is proper to give honour to who it is due. Bayelsa is always full of creative people; writers who are eager at any time to project the issues that bedevil the society via their various forms of writing. As at today, even as we remember the old writers, a set of young new writers are already on the scene. This is good for us, for the whole nation”.
In the interim, the Bayelsa Classic Choir took over the arena. Although the songs were rendered in the Izon language, the stimulating effects soothed the embers of guests. The voices were in consonance with the literary mood of the moment as people nodded their heads and gyrated on their seats. When it was over, they were welcomed with a resounding standing ovation. Then came Andres Alagba, a young private school teacher who rendered powerful spoken word poetry.
Accompanied with music, Alagba reeled out soft, melodious lines on the problems of Nigeria. She said, “it has been 40 years of racking our brains to be, to achieve. It has been 40 years of intensive writing, doing poems, writing novels, delivering drama, for the betterment of the society. Today we are on world map due to the vibrancy of our writing. We therefore have humility of excellence, excellence that symbolizes and eulogizes our authors, wonderful writers”. As she sang, chanted, eyes glued into the future, the guitarist kept the musical tempo on, gingering guests on in the spirit.
In his speech, ANA president Mr. Camillus Ukah harped on the loveliness of the association at 40. “Forty years is an important mileage in any individual or institution. It is time of coming of age which ANA has just attained. We have come of age, age of reasoning; age when to reassess our goals, our aims, our objectives. This is time for us to therefore continue with our ten cities tour to feel the pulse of the society, of the writers’ communities in different states and cities”.
To him Bayelsa has always been a good host, a vibrant home for writers, a breeding ground for sound authorship. “Bayelsa is therefore apt to host us at a short notice for which we are elated. Even then, the theme of this gathering is dear to us. Yet, writers here are resolute, equal to the task. It is apt also to celebrate creativity. Our literature has to be kept alive. In Ibadan the other day, we had a good time when the Mbari culture was re-enacted. This is why it is good to deepen our creativity, to also help continue to breed, nurse, nurture and tutor young writers in the rich tradition of Nigerian literature”.
Ukah also paid glowing tributes to Engineer Emma Opigo, Nengi Ilagha, Minima, Otobotekere for their ceaseless contributions to keep ANA on the front-burner of national relevance. “We also have 40,000 books for select schools in Bayelsa”, Ukah further enthused. “It is themed a book a week a child project”. With this, the books were instantly presented to the schools present and the glow on their faces was unfathomable. The books obviously were meant to encourage them not just to read, but to also begin to show interest in authorship. Ukah charged them; “please read a book a week. Go back to the books, that is our dream. When you do, you shine like a star, a champion”.
Chairman of the occasion Professor D. Teilanyo of the University of Benin, Edo State, was equally glad to host the children and observe their enthusiasm about reading, writing, acquiring knowledge. However, his attention was primarily focused on the theme of the event. On the high table with him to handle the theme was Miesonuma Minima, one of the strongholds of ANA in the state, and a prolific author. Also present were Dr. Ebi Yeibo, a scholar and literary expert and Mrs. Bina Nengi Ilagha, an author and former chairman of ANA, Bayelsa.
Professor Teilanyo said; “to begin with, reading is superior to vision, visual. This is why it is more interesting to read because reading helps you to explore the world even in the comfort of your home. The likes of Opigo have been helpful in this regard in the state. We are here to discuss Niger Delta because some leaders and writers have kept the scene alive ever since. Therefore whether the writing is regarded as new or old we should be conscious of standards. The standards of literature has to be of high quality, while the issues discussed in our books have to be essentially Niger Delta matters”, he said.
Ilagha who dwelt so much on socio-cultural issues of the people in her own offerings stated that “creative writing on Niger Delta has to be on the problems of the people. We have to be at home with the matters that bother us as a people. The stories have to involve our people, our beliefs, our culture, our affairs, whether social or economic”.
On his part, Minima, a renowned dramatist/playwright opined, “We have to first and foremost recognize our immediate problems and these have to constitute the bulk of the stories we write. We have plenty of such to keep our attention as writers. These are cultural, social and political issues pertaining to Niger Delta. What happens in our midst, in our larger society, reinforce our literary zeal and delivery”.
Yeibo said: “literature here in the Niger Delta says a lot about all the important aspects of the lives of the people. Not only that. The geographical area called the Niger Delta cannot exist in isolation from Nigeria. Sometimes too, these writings can include a portion of the larger enclave. Bayelsa, no doubt, is the heart of the Niger Delta. It is where action happens and we could see how the older writers exploited that to produce large collections of literary materials”.
In all, however, they all agreed that whether the works are written now or were done in the past, the central issue is that the language has to be of literary standards, high quality. A lot of examples were given to cite Chinua Achebe’s works that appeal across creed, region, nations, culture, race, colours and so on.
To justify the potency of Achebe’s works, some excerpts were taken from Things Fall Apart while a solemn song composed to synchronize with the place of Okonkwo, the central character sent the guests on their toes. Then in the end, the president adopted the choir for the grand gathering on the D-day in Abuja. A literary magazine, ‘The Mariner’, a mouth-piece of Bayelsa ANA was also unveiled. Rich in literary offerings it was distributed free of charge to students and guests to further entrench literature.
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