The Nation Newspaper

Category: Life – The Midweek Magazine

  • 50 years of serving humanity

    50 years of serving humanity

    Last Thursday at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja, members of the Rotary Club of Ikeja celebrated its 50th Anniversary. Joseph Eshanokpe, who was there, reports.

    IT has come a long way. From a small beginning in 1967 with only 25 members, the Rotary Club of Ikeja in District 9110, has grown big, like an iroko tree, sponsoring 69 clubs, impacting lives with its numerous programmes and projects and hitting the golden age. To celebrate its achievements, last Thursday, it held its golden jubilee anniversary at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja.

    The hotel’s hall, tables and chairs were dressed in white.  At exactly 1.37pm, the club’s President AdeniyiAdelaja kicked off the anniversary with the ringing of the bell, followed by a song titled: O Lord… led by YinkaOkebukola, a past president.  Two other songs titled: Vive Le Rotary and Rotary, Rotary were also rendered.

    Thereafter, an industry mogul Chief Olusegun Osunkeye was decorated as the Sergeant-at-Arms. Osunkeye gave a good account of his job as he moved from table to table exchanging pleasantries beaming his characteristic smile. On getting to this reporter, he said in reply to a question: ‘’Oh, you are journalist? You are welcome.’’  He later led the collection of funds where he not only made a huge success, but also led by example by making the highest donation.

    Adelaja explained why the historic event was held at the hotel. “That was where the club started and has remained since,”he said, noting that the founder of the hotel, Chief Joe Harold, was a foundation member of the club. He also noted the significance of the day. The club was, indeed, founded on August 31, 1967. He thanked the founders for their vision and hard work to nurture their baby into adulthood.

    Former Health Minister Prince Julius Adelusi-Adelusi, who was the club’s president in 1969,went down the memory lane. He said the club had a robust beginning, adding that its first installation was the best. ‘’We are  celebrating 50th Anniversary of a club that was solid from the beginning in terms of fellowship and leadership,” Adelusi-Adeluyi, a former district governor said, adding that the club is second in the district and eighth in the country.

    Rotary International President’s goodwill message was read by Director-General Wale Ogunbadejo.

    Congratulating Ikeja Club, the RI chief described it as a mustard seed that has grown into a big tree and has fulfilled its missionof serving humanity. He urged members not to rest on their oars. He later presented a certification of commendation to the club. There were also representatives of some clubs created by Rotary Club of Ikeja. They were Rotary Clubs of Abeokuta, Isolo, Iju, Ilupeju and Opebi, among others.

    Ogunbadejo decorated members, who had served the club for over 40 years. They included Adelusi-Adeluyi, Lawal Solarin, Oba Adedapo Tejuoso, a former DG and Osunkeye.

    There was a testimony by Mrs.- Olagboju Olowuye, whose school, Ikeja Secondary High School, has benefited a lot from Rotary Club, Ikeja. Thanking the club for its gesture, she said the school really enjoyed its goodwill, which came in form of a block of classrooms, glasses for pupils, furniture, equipped computer room and an alternative power supply. “We are proud of you,’’ she said.

  • Odeh out with Guns of Power

    Odeh out with Guns of Power

    Former Director General of the National Film and Video Censors Board, Rosaline Odeh, has released a new book Guns of power. The book which trails incisively the  tumultuous love affair between a young couple; one a soldier whose involvement in a military coup in an African country trumps him up as Head of State and the other a young village university undergraduate has been received well.

    United States-based Strategic Book Publishing and Rights LLC, publishers of Guns of power, also confirmed that the book is selling fast on Amazon and other book stores across the US and United Kingdom.

    Readers are tripped by the lucidity, pace and suspense of the author who was the biographer and head of research and documentation at the Federal Ministry of Information.

    In a chat recently, Odeh said she was on sabbatical and dusted a manuscript written several years ago to retouch it when publishers snapped it up.

    To an insider at Strategic Books, Guns of power is doing well since it was published. Our editors knew we had a bestseller in our hands when they first read the manuscript”.

    According to the publishers, Guns of power, a love story during military rule in West Africa, reflects life in the 1960s when coups were rampant. In the novel, John, a young military officer falls in love with Noma, a young undergraduate at the university.

    ”Their love story takes a dramatic turn when John becomes the head of state after a coup. The politics and intrigues that follow are mindboggling and tragic.

    Odeh was editor of Who Is Who InNigeria, a compendium published by the Federal Ministry of Information. She also wrote biographies of Nigerian leaders and heads of states before her meritorious retirement from Nigeria civil service. After her years  as Director  General National Film and Video Censors Board, she retired again to run Grotto Afrique; Gallery of History which is a store for  Nigeria’s historical information in Abuja Nigeria.

  • ECOBA gives awards to exceptional students

    ECOBA gives awards to exceptional students

    Ihe Edo College Old Boys Association (ECOBA) has presented awards to some students of Edo College, Benin City, for exceptional performances in various subjects in the last academic session. The award plaques and cash prizes were presented to the students at the graduation/prize giving ceremony organised by the  the school recently.

    The ceremony, which was part of the activities to mark the end of 2016/2017 academic session, had in attendance many dignitaries, including Mr. Arnaud Dornon, the French Cultural Attachee in Nigeria; Ambassador Vincent Okobi, who chaired the event and Head of Service, Edo State Civil Service Commission, Mrs. Gladys Idahor, represented by Permanent Secretary, Edo State Civil Service Commission, Reverend S.O Uwuangue.

    The recipients were Erokpadamwen Andrew, who won Senator David Dafinone’s prize for Further Mathematics in SS3, the Godwin Ize-Iyamu prize for Mathematics in JSS 3 students went to  Ajah Success Ifeanyi, the Senator David Dafinone Foundation prizes for Economics  and Accounts in SS3  were clinched by Eguavoen  Constance, the Edward Iyamu prize for Physics  in SS3  was given to Igbinijesu Samuel, the SS3 prize for Fine Art, donated by Michael Omo-Osagie, went to Akhigbe Ofure,  Air Vice Marshall Joe Ehigie’s prize for Drama was given to Enofe Eseosa, Osazenaye Osarenkhoe’s prize for Agricultural Science in SS3 was awarded to Uwadiae  Erickson who also won the Madam Ofure Akpata’s prize for Biology, while the Omaha Endowment Foundation prize for Geography went to Odoemenem Chinedu.

    At the JSS 3 level, Ambassador Vincent Okobi’s prize for Best student in French was given to Ehimhen Stevenson

    Other award recipients were Igbinijesu Samuel who won the Overall Best Performing student award, Okeghemu E. Emmanuel, Best Performing Student in JSS 3 and Igiehon Ekpenede who bagged the most hard-working student award.

    In the staff category, Jeffery Igbinedion won the Best Administrator award, Ifueko Evbenage, Best English Teacher award, while Mrs. Ighile Esther was awarded Most Resourceful Staff.

    Chairman on the occasion, who is also an old boy of the college, Ambassador Okobi congratulated the students for their success after many years of study in the school.

    The Principal, Mr. Raphael Omorogbe, congratulated the graduating students, saying the boys have done well by upholding the true value of the college, and for obeying the rules and regulations.

    Omorogbe appreciated parents and staff for their support throughout the 2016/2017 academic session, stressing that the occasion wouldn’t have been possible without their moral and financial support.

    In his lecture, the Dean, Faculty of Education, University of Benin,Prof E.O. Iyamucommended the hard-work of the students and admonished them to stay away from any form of deviant behavior that might put them and their parents to shame.

    He encouraged the students to always have regard for constituted authorities and obey rules and regulations wherever they find themselves. He added that they should keep on the reading culture as they have already been equipped with tools to guide them towards excellence.

    Also advising the students, the Head of Service, Edo State Civil Service Commission, Mrs. Gladys Idahor represented by the Permanent Secretary, Edo State Civil Service Commission, Reverend S.O Uwuangueadvised the graduating students to be good ambassadors of the school by keeping the ball rolling anywhere they find themselves.

    Also speaking at the occasion, the Honorable Commissioner for Education, Edo State,Mr. Christopher Adesotu represented by Mrs. A.P Joel congratulated all students of the school, which according to her, is known for academic excellence and assured them of success.

    Highlights of the event was thepresentation of a song by Heavenly Voices, cultural display by Edo College’s Cultural Club, special presentation by members of the press club of the graduating class.

    The event also featured presentation of awards and prizes for excellence by ECOBA to outstanding students and staff, while awards for best French class and best French students was presented by the chairman of the occasion Ambassador Okobi.

  • ‘Nigerians do not believe in Nigeria’

    Nigeria is in anundesirable state because its citizens do not exhibit the intangible identifiers of nationhood,”  university don Dr. Chukwuedozie Ajaero  has said.

    He said the hindrance to the country’s development was not the demographic burden, but the palpable lack of trust, believe in, and commitment to the Nigerian concept.

    Ajaero, a senior lecturer at the Department of Geography, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, spoke at a roundtable organised by the Centre for Public Policy Alternatives (CPPA), a non-partisan public policy think-tank based in Lagos.

    “None of our structural, political and economic challenges is peculiar. What we lack is a sound conscience, moral leadership, commitment and the will to implement good policies. All of these are not quantifiable,” he noted.

    The event was convened by CPPA to proffer workable solutions to Nigeria’s demographic challenges, and convert what could be a liability to an asset. Nigeria’s population is projected to reach 400 million by year 2050.

    Head/Specialist UNFPA (Lagos Liaison office), Dr. Omolaso Omosehin said the bane of development in Nigeria is the lack of capacity to plan and prepare for the future.

    According to him, “an increasing population is not necessarily a problem; what makes the difference is planning.”Also present at the event were Prof. Victor Okoruwa, Dr. SalisuIshiaku, Funmi Ayeni, Olusegun Sotola, and Olayinka Ogidie.

    Parish Priest, St. Philip and James Catholic Church, Lekki, Monsignor Francis Ogunmodede  stated that unlike the misconceptions, the Catholic Church does not promote unregulated procreation. Rather, the church advocates natural planning methods, reasonable procreation according to capacity to care and respect for human dignity.

    Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan Dr. Senawon Olaoluwa noted that the area now called Nigeria has always been densely populated; this is nothing new.

    The main concern should be what to do with the population. Is Nigeria becoming a nuisance to other societies? How do we manage our resources?

    He stressed the need to move beyond extractive activities (mineral resources) to harness our productive, inventive capacities (human resources).

    Research &Programmes Director (CPPA), Ms. Mojisola Akpojiyovbi, stressed the importance of education, advocacy and human capacity development as effectual tools that can manage population growth, and also enable optimal use of Nigeria’s physical and human resources.

  • Society for the blind celebrates white cane day

    Society for the blind celebrates white cane day

    It was a beautiful day to remember as students, members, trustees and executive council members of the Federal Nigeria Society for the Blind (FNSB) stormed the National Stadium, Surulere,  Lagos to walk for fitness and also celebrate their annual White Cane Day.

    The event tagged “Fitness Walk for sight 2017” is a yearly event to celebrate the White Cane day and create awareness for members of the public to the effect that being  visually impaired is not the end of life.

    Council (FNSB)Asiwaju Bola Osibo, told The Nation that the white cane day is a public enlightenment programme of the society started 12 years ago to  draw the  attention of the public to the plight of the blind and partially sighted persons in our society.

    “The white cane is a universal symbol with which you recognise a visually challenged person. It simply means that when you see a person with a white cane, you should recognise him/her as being visually impaired or blind and it is everyone’s responsibility to lend a helping hand. The list of support the public can give is endless,” he said.

    The centre’s Principal, Mr. Nicholas Obot, said 7 students of the centre are not labeled as blind but referred to as visually impaired since they are opened to a number of opportunities to empower them for integration into the society.

    The fitness walk kicked off at 7:00am from the National Stadium, where some visually impaired persons with their white canes as guides walked down to Costain Roundabout.  They made a stopover at GlansvilLimited, where they were addressed by a representative of the company, who thanked the society for showing concern to the visually impaired and also expressed optimism about seeing them again next year.

    The walk continued from  Glansvilback to the National Stadium, where everyone present were entertained to good music, drinks, food from De United Foods Limited and  the skilful display of stunts by Bad Gang power-bike riders.

  • Helping the helpless

    Helping the helpless

    Health Emergency Initiative (HEI) has intervened in over 2,000 cases of health challenges since inception and has signed Memorandum of Understanding with 11 public hospitals to provide financial assistance to the needy. Oyeyemi Gbenga-Mustapha writes on HEI’s recent interventions to help needy patients in Lagos. 

    For Mrs. Aina Shittu, whose daughter, Zainab, suddenly slumped and was rushed to the hospital, her joy knew no bound following the assistance by Health Emergency Initiative (HEI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO).

    Mrs. Shittu recalled that her daughter couldn’t talk or walk or move her limbs: “We took her to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Ebute Metta, tests that run up to N10, 000 were prescribed. We gathered all we had and the results were out. The doctor then told us that her condition is medical and not surgical, and we were handed a list of drugs.

    ‘’Although Zainab was on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), it did not cover the drugs that she had to take because the cost was over N5,000 and she must take them daily for six weeks. My husband and I had exhausted all our finances and we were unable to pay for the drugs. It was then someone introduced us to Health Emergency Initiative (HEI), which took over her case and paid for the drugs. Today, I am happy my daughter is alive, hale and hearty.”

    Sara Edet, a young expectant mother and housewife, was in her last trimester when she suddenly began to bleed. She went to the hospital immediately.

    At the hospital, Mrs. Edet recalled that she went for a scan, and the result was not encouraging. After three days, her case was classified as critical and was referred for surgery. “The doctor said something should be done urgently to save the pregnancy. I was taken to a health facility at Surulere, Lagos for another test. By the time we returned for the surgery, we had spent all the money that we had and we had no money again for the surgery. It was the Health Emergency Initiative (HEI) that came to my rescue and paid all my bills. I have been safely delivered of my baby. I am so grateful,” said Mrs. Edet.

    They are not the only people that have been assisted by HEI. The NGO believes in – ‘None should die’.

    Another beneficiary, Mrs. Julie Nwokoma, put it in perspective.

    ‘’HEI assists the downtrodden and it is always timely and this is based on my experience,’’ she said.

    She shared how she went to a hospital in Takwa Bay, Lagos and was told she couldn’t have her baby normally. This piece of information left her worried. “I was told my blood pressure was too high and was referred to the Island Maternity, Lagos. When I got there, I was taken to the theatre and told I could settle the bill after the surgery.”

    Mrs. Nwokoma had her baby safely. But three days later when the hospital brought the bill, she was unable to pay. “My husband was out looking for money without success. I had left my children at home for several days, and here I was, in the hospital with a new baby, but unable to go home because we could not settle the bill.”

    Mrs. Nwokoma said she was really worried and upset. “I burst into tears and my blood pressure began to rise again. I was crying. How HEI got wind of my case is still a miracle. They came around. The representatives told me they were from an organisation called the Health Emergency Initiative (HEI), for indigent patients and wanted to help. I was very happy. I stayed in that hospital for one month. They paid my bills and I was released. I am grateful.”

    These are testimonies of some Nigerians out of many that HEI helped because they cannot afford healthcare services. They are so poor they cannot afford a square meal a day.

    And that is why NGO is put in place, its Board of  the Trustees (BoT) Chairman, Dr. Ndi Onuekusi explained.

    Onuekusi said HEI has intervened in over 2,000 cases since inception and has signed Memoranda of Understanding with 11 public hospitals so as to render financial assistance to the needy.

    He said: “There are instances of people that cannot be discharged from hospital because they owe as little as N2,000. So many Nigerians are dying because they are unable to pay to obtain treatment even in government hospitals. But there are benevolent Nigerians that set up initiatives and organisations to take care of the medical needs of the indigent such as HEI. HEI can do more if we get sponsors and other financial help from people with human milk of kindness.”

    Shedding light on the mode operandi of the organisation, Onuekusi said the financial provision for healthcare is an area of ignorance in Nigeria.

    “What HEI does is to provide assurance of prompt settlement of bills for the indigent to obtain access to health care in public hospitals.

    “The HEI programme for indigent patients is especially for indigent Nigerians some of who die because they are unable to pay as little as N2, 000 for medical bills. HEI also takes care of patients detained for inability to settle their treatment bills and has intervened in about 150 patients in 20 hospitals. There is no burden whatsoever on the beneficiary. Beneficiaries are decided on the basis of need. This is a needs-based initiative and support only. The beneficiary does not have to register or know anybody, but only has to qualify for the support to be provided.”

    Onuekusi said HEI was raising funds to assist the indigent with health problems. “What HEI does is provide assurance of prompt settlement of bills to obtain access to health care in public hospitals. Medical health care is generally expensive and many die because they cannot afford it. The ordinary medical care is being made available to the indigent by HEI.

    The BoT chair said: “No health system can be functional if it does not obey three basic organisational rules of effectiveness, efficiency and equity. First, it must be effective, that is, it must do what it is supposed to do. Second, it must be efficient by do it at the least cost possible. Third, there must be no discrimination between the rich and poor.”

  • Church marks 150th anniversary with exhibition

    Church marks 150th anniversary with exhibition

    The 150-year-old Cathedral Church of  St. Jude, Ebute-Metta, Lagos, last week opened a photo exhibition titled: Faces, Structures and Moments, as part of activities marking the church’s anniversary, Assistant Editor (Arts) Ozolua Uhakheme reports.

    Archival photographs dating back to over a century formed the core of collections on display at the Young Men Christian Union Hall (YMCU), Cathedral Church of St. Jude, Ebute Meta, Lagos.

    The exhibition tagged: Faces, structures and moments, which opened last Tuesday, featured a wide range of photographs that captured, among others, some faces, structures and moments in the 150-year-old history of the church, established following the settlement of Christian refuges from Abeokuta.

    Leading the collection are photographs of the church’s early leaders (14 of the 18 vicars of the church). They included Rev J. S. Williams (1895-1901), Rev. Canon James Pearse (1901-1938), Rev T.O. Dedeke (1939-1955), Venerable A. A. Efunkoya (1961-1964) and Rev Canon J. S. Adeniyi (1967-1970).

    Also on display are historic photographs, showing different stages and moments in the life of the YMCU, dating back to when the union was nine years till date. Examples of such photographs are YMCU @9 in 1950, YMCU @45 in 1986 and YMCU @65 in 2006. Photographs of major events such as readers’ procession in the 90s and Osinbajos and YMCU members, Ikenne, in 1965/1966 are also on display.

    Other photographs showing the transformation of the structures include the old vicarage, Tejuoso chapel, Bethany house and the tree shaded hall. The exhibition, which will remain open for two weeks, kick-started the church’s process of rebuilding its memories and records.

    The 150th Anniversary Committee Vice Chairman, Mr Lanre Idowu, said one of the objectives of the exhibition is to enable the church start the process of rebuilding its memories and archives, noting that much of important records such as photographs have been lost to poor records keeping and handling. He said it would also rekindle parishioners’ interest in keeping record in order to assist the church to ‘digitally archive them and return the original to the owners’.

    On how the church was able to source its exhibits, Idowu said: “We appealed to parishioners to share with us these images we are showing. We also looked into church records, but we had lost a lot of these photographs. Part of what this exhibition will do for us is to begin to restore our records, hoping we can build on it. This will also rekindle parishioners’ interest in keeping their records in order to digitally archive them and return the original to the owners.

    “The church has no fewer than 18 vicars. And photographs of 14 out of the 18 past vicars are on display at the exhibition. But two parishioners have promised to provide two of the four photographs of the vicars. The photographs of the first two are, however, still missing, which are Rev. Faulkner and Rev John White. There are still some exhibits to be added, which were not ready at the time of curating this exhibition. Some of the exhibits will be part of a book that is in the works.”

    According to Idowu, the collection on display has been faithful to the exhibition theme: Faces, structures and moments. This, he said, explained an aspect of the anniversary as the church  would re-enact the struggle. He disclosed that there would be a dance drama presentation, which will tell the exodus of the expelled Christian refugees following a clash between them and traditionalists in Abeokuta.

    “That exodus will be presented in a dance format. A lot has happened in the life of the church. A book is in the works on the church and this celebration gives us the opportunity to continue to dig for more facts about the church. St. Jude Church is the first church to be established on Lagos Mainland,” he added.

    The exhibition was declared open by Ambassador Ebun Olu Taiwo and attended by guests, who included Bishop Emeritus Diocese of Mbaise, Rt Revd Bright J. E Ogu; Bishop, Diocese of Lagos Mainland Rt Revd Akinpelu Johnson, and Dean, Cathedral Church of St. Jude, Venerable Feyi Ojelabi

  • What’s Your Excuse?

    What’s Your Excuse?

    when Borislav and DusankaVujicic were told they would have a baby, they could hardly contain their joy. It was ‘a dream come true’. The pregnancy period was full of joyful anticipation. When the delivery day finally arrived, on December 4, 1982, Dusanka delivered her delightful baby, or so she thought until she asked the nurses about the health of her son and they couldn’t respond. When she directed the same question to the doctor, he revealed that the baby had a Phocomelia syndrome. She had worked as a midwife, so she knew what the term meant. The baby had a rare disorder resulting in the absence of arms or legs! Shocked, she refused to see the baby or hold him when the nurse held him out to her. She couldn’t understand how three sonograms did not reveal any complication. Eventually, Borislav and Dusanka accepted their son’s condition and raised the child as a dedicated Christian.

    However, this article is not about Borislav and Dusanka; it is about Nicholas James “Nick” Vujicic, the limbless child. The parents might have overcome their shock and accepted Nick but he had his entire life ahead of him. As a child, Nick struggled mentally, emotionally and physically. He battled with loneliness, depressionand bullying.

    He consistently wondered why he was different from other children. Finally, he came to terms with his condition and found his strength in God. He had to learn to stand up by pushing against the wall with his head and slowly standing upright. Gradually, he converted his obvious limitations to his greatest asset. He found his purpose in giving hope to the hopeless.

    Stop to think for a moment. You have hands and feet you are practically taking for granted. You stand and walk without even thinking. You eat with ease. You comb your hair. You type on your computer. You use your phones. Imagine for a while the limitations you would encounter without your hands and feet. Someone else would rather die than live like that, but not Nick.

    Without hands and feet, Nick Vujicic graduated from Griffith University at age 21 with a Bachelor of Commerce. He had his first speaking engagement at age 19 and has since spoken more than 3, 000 times. Nick has spoken in more than 57 countries on five continents and has met with several government officials and presidents.

    He founded a motivational speaking company, Attitude is Altitude. He is also a Christian evangelist. Nick also starred in a short film that won an award at a film festival. He has appeared on several TV shows and has authored several books. More importantly, he is happily married with two children.

    Out of curiosity, I watched some of Nick Vujicic’s videos on YouTube and could not believe my eyes when I saw him swimming, playing gulf, typing, surfing and skydiving. I couldn’t help but wonder what else Nick would have done if he had hands and feet! Obviously, he is not allowing anything to limit him. On the other hand,most of us are busy looking for reasons why we can’t achieve our goals. Here are a few lessons I got from Nick:

    • Life may not be fair but it is waiting for your response. It is not what life offers that matters but what you do with it.
    • Never live a life that is dependent on people. Stand on your feet and take responsibility for your life. You are not a liability but an asset.
    • Never settle for an average life when you can be the best. If Nick merely survived, we would have commended him for perseverance. However, he went far beyond that; be became a reason for others to hope.
    • Life and circumstances only suggest limitations to you; you are the one who imposes the limitations on yourself.
    • You can find your purpose in your situation, no matter how tough.
    • You may be rejected by many but you are someone’s masterpiece.
    • Succeeding in spite of your challenges makes you an inspiration; giving up robs you of yourhonoured place in history.
    • People who are ‘less fortunate’ are making the most of life; if you don’t, you don’t deserve your good fortune.

    You will surprise yourself if you make the most of what you already have.

    Please share your comments with me by visiting www.olanreamodu.com and following me on twitter @lanreamodu.

  • Conference on Nigerian art holds in Tate Modern

    A major international conference that will explore new positions on West-African modernism, before and after independence, will hold at Starr Cinema, Tate Modern Bankside, London, United Kingdom on September 28 and 29.

    Tagged Positioning Nigerian Modernism, the conference, which  holds during the centenary of pioneering Nigerian artist Ben Enwonwu, is jointly hosted by independent curator Bea Gassmann de Sousa, and curator, International Art, Tate Modern, Kerryn Greenberg.

    It is a unique opportunity to examine strategies of cultural independence and to reflect upon the impact of transnationalism and de-colonsation in art criticism and museum collections today.

    Positioning Nigerian Modernism will kick off with a keynote lecture by curator, art historian and author of Postcolonial Modernism: Art and Decolonisation in Twentieth-Century Nigeria Prof. Chika Okeke-Agulu.

    This will be followed by  conference featuring four sessions: Modernism and Independence in West Africa, The Formation of National Identity and Preservation of History, Knowledge and Legacy: Unexpected Tropes and Collecting Modern African Art: 1950–2017.

    This landmark event brings together major institutions and thinkers at the forefront of post-colonial and transnational thought and practitioners of these approaches in a global institutional context.

     

     

     

     

  • Remembering Okpewho one year after

    Remembering Okpewho one year after

    The life and works of the late United States-based Nigerian award-winning novelist Prof Isidore Okpewho were celebrated recently at Yale University, United States and Asaba in Delta State to commemorate the first anniversary of his death, Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME reports. 

    last Monday literary scholars, family and associates of one of the foremost scholars of African Oral Literature and award-winning novelist, the late Prof Isidore Okpewho, converged on Asaba, Delta State capital, to commemorate his one year anniversary.

    The literary evening, which held at Hotel Benezia, Asaba was organised by the Delta Literary Forum (DLF) and featured special readings from two of Okpewho’s award-winning books, The Victims and The Last Duty, short critiques, eulogies, anecdotes and other commentaries.

    Okpewho, who died on September 4, last year in the United States at 74, had novels, such as The Victims, The Last Duty, and Call Me By My Rightful Name to his credit. They reveal a profound fictive acumen at work.

    In the US, his family gathered with friends to share memories, stories and prayers at his graveside in celebration of his rich life and legacy. According to Prof. Nduka Otiono, a notable mentee of  Okpewho, within this first year of the death of the author of over a dozen books, intellectuals from various parts of the world have acclaimed the genius of Okpewho as a distinguished man of letters.

    Among several activities held posthumously in his honour was the special roundtable on his life and workS at the African Literature Association (ALA) conference at Yale University, which was described as particularly noteworthy.

    Chaired by the ALA new President, Prof. Adeleke Adeeko, the roundtable featured associates and speakers who had been taught by Okpewho and who had become professors in North America.

    An ex-student of the late Prof Okpewho at University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Dr. Sola Balogun, now a lecturer at Theatre and Media Arts Department, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, described the late Okpewho as an astute scholar, brilliant and committed academic who combined scholarship with creativity almost on equal terms.

    “He taught me African prose in my second and third years at the University of Ibadan. I remember his popular novel, The Victims, which was on the list of West African Examinations Council (WAEC) recommended texts for many years and one of the texts that we studied as undergraduates.

    ‘’The late professor was a talented teacher who imparted the values of hard work and excellent scholarship into us. He was an inspiring lecturer whose class and lessons addressed diverse issues about life and society, particularly the pains and plights of the hapless Africans and their development challenges. He will surely be remembered as one of the gifted lecturers who gave the English Department at the University of Ibadan its pride, good image and respect in and outside Nigeria,” Balogun recalled.

    One of Nigeria’s celebrated writers, columnists and Viebranz Visiting Professor of Creative Writing at St Lawrence University, Canton, US, Ndibe said: ”Okpewho’s passing last September came to me as a devastating development—even though I had been aware of his infirm state for some time. The shock came not just from the fact that Okpewho was one of that rare breed, a Renaissance man whose intellectual accomplishments were of the first order and ranged over the vast ground of the humanities. There was that—a fact that means that, even in death, his name, reputation and work, his memory, would never dim or lose their lustre but would remain vital. In the arena of Africa’s oral literatures, including the epic traditions, no other scholar came close to the scale, ambition, originality and insightfulness of the work that he did.

    But, he was never content to bask in his staggering achievements as a scholar. His novels, including The Victims, The Last Duty, and Call Me By My Rightful Name, reveal a profound fictive acumen at work. If his profile as a novelist is not pronounced on a global stage, it is not, I suggest, because his novels lag in imaginative power and stylistic dazzle. Instead, I think it’s the case that literary scholars, already in awe of his pre-eminence as a scholar, had a hard time figuring out how to acknowledge his genius as a creative spirit.

    In a world forged by human fantasy, a man like Okpewho, polyglot scholar extraordinaire, would never die, but remain forever among mortals, his capacity for consequential thought enriching and irrigating humanity. And yet, because he brought his intellect to bear on so many areas of knowledge production, he left us a rich and enduring legacy. He ensured that, though no longer in the physical realm, his voice and wisdom remain, escorting us, teaching and expanding us.”

    Department of Global Interdisciplinary Studies Acting Chair, and Associate Professor of English, Villanova University, US Prof.Chiji AkÍma said it was difficult to believe that it has been 12 months since friends, associates and family gathered at the serene grounds of Gate of Heaven cemetery, East Hanover, New Jersey, US to bid their final farewell to departed Okpewho.

    “On that late summer morning, the sun blazing, we committed Prof’s body to mother earth, a rite which, a year later, feels like yesterday.But it isn’t yesterday in terms of compressed time, for it would be impossible to recall the full length of Prof’s illustrious life and the impact he had on all those who encountered him at various epochs of his 74 years with us in one fleeting day.

    “Time has flown quickly by, mercifully leaving intact fondest memories of a great husband and father, an illustrious patriot, and a consummate scholar and teacher. In his bereaved wife, children, grandchildren, siblings, a throng of friends and students, and a library of seminal and monumental publications, Prof lives on, a true iroko tree standing majestic in the public square, unperturbed by the passage of time,” he said.