Akin Bello, the winner of the $20,000 (over N3million) prestigious Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature, feels great about his feat. But, to him, more than winning a literary prize, writers should keep at being the conscience of the nation. This is why Bello is in the forefront of the campaign to revive the reading culture. In this chat with Evelyn Osagie, he speaks about his winning ace and what he hates about winning the award.
Ibadan was described by a poet as a “running splash of gold – flung and scattered among seven hills like broken China in the sun”.
Taking a cue from this metaphor in J.P Clark’s poem of the same title, Ibadan is indeed a “splashing ruddiness”of the Nigerian literary world.
Like a mother with an hydra-headed umbilical cord that stretches far and wide, there is something about the city that has kept its influence alive throughout Nigeria’s literary history – which many believe is linked to its foremost citadel of learning, the University of Ibadan (UI) and its calm and serene environment.
From far back as the 50s, the Oyo State capital has continued to host a colossal of literary brains and talents with exceptional works. It has not only stirred the pen of many writers but diverse literary movements and prizes within and outside the country.
Inspired by the footprints of their forebears, like the late Cyprian Ekwensi, Wole Soyinka, the late Chinua Achebe, TM Aluko, J.P Clark, Chukwuemeka Ike, writers linked, one-way-or-another, to the city have continued to bag prestigious literary prizes in recent years.
Bello’s who hails from Oyo State, is one of many. Beating 162 others submitted, his work, Egbon of Lagos won the prestigious Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature for the year.
Before him, Babatunde Rotimi’s novel, Bombay’s Republic, bagged the 2012 Caine Prize while Tade Ipadeola emerged winner for the NLNG Literature Prize (that recently announced its final shortlist for the 2014 edition) with his collection, Sahara Testament.
The feeling of winning
Three months after emerging the ‘Africa’s King of Drama’ as adjudged by the prize’s judges drawn from Nigeria, Uganda, Mali and South Africa, Bello is still basking in the euphoria. But what is the feeling like winning the prize, he was asked. “It feels great! It’s simply been a God-sent influence in my life in more ways than I care to recount. Next to being published, recognition brings joy and buoys up one’s confidence as a writer. Many people easily identify with me and congratulate me. And I like that. For me, it’s heartening that people are noticing and talking about the book; and I’d only hope that this actually translate into the sales of the book,” he said.
And although it is being debated whether literary prizes impact on the growth of creative writing or not, Bello believes it does motivate writer. He said: “It has tremendous impact! All creative writing is communication efforts – what Chinua Achebe called ‘propaganda’. But communication as everyone knows is a two-way street. Prizes are powerful indications that one’s writings are touching the hearts of others and nothing can be more gratifying for a writer than the recognition that comes with the prize. For me, it will help inspire me to work harder. I earnestly hope to leverage on this prize thing to give as wide an exposure as possible to my other works already in print gathering dust on the shelves of bookstores before this play came along.”
Prize’s turn-off
Despite the attention the feat brings, it comes with its share of turn-offs. Hear him: “I hate it when people place so much emphasis on the prize money. I am constantly being asked: “how has $20,000 changed my life?” The truth is that the money is tucked away in a fixed deposit so it has not changed my life in any way. And that’s the way I want it for some time at least. At my age, what new things do I want to go about acquiring frenziedly because I’ve won a prize? I’d want them “to forget about the money and look for my play to read if they’re really interested in literature/literary attainment”.
“I absolutely detest the poverty-induced Nigerian mentality that portrays and delineate everything in the world as money, money, money. I also hate it when people who haven’t even seen the book let alone read it want you to start telling them about it.”
Writers as society’s conscience
Besides winning prizes, playwright urged writers to go beyond the quest for recognition to zealously keeping at their role as at a time. He observed that such is needed at a time the nation is besieged with diverse problems.
Bello said: “More than that, I think writers should concentrate on writing good works rather than deliberately writing for the purpose of impressing prizes’ judges because the demands of prizes differ widely. The nation is once again at the edge of a precipice and the leaders are far too concerned with personal stakes to take any meaningful, decisive steps. That is what they refer to as politicisation. It is most unfortunate that government in any developing nation can even contemplate anything that directly, even remotely impinge on the spread of knowledge. But for Nigeria it is not surprising. It is said, loud and clear, that all that matters is money, more money and yet more money. So, knowledge is unnecessary as far as the rulers are concerned unless it is useful for acquiring money particularly through illegal, unproductive means. Writers are the conscience of the nation and we must continue to draw attention to the dangers even if only for posterity,” the playwright said.
Before writing
Born in Lagos in 1950, Bello (64) is a widely-travelled writer with a richly diversified work experience who lives and works in Ibadan. He was educated in Oyo, Ghana and the University of Ife (Unife), now Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) where he studied Political Science. Before settling down to writing, he was into consultancy and even dabbled in politics in the days of the late General Sanni Abacha in which he offered to serve in the capacity of Chairman of Amuwo-Odofin Local Government in Lagos.
Voyage into writing
No matter the field that Bello found himself, one thing had remained – his love for book and writing. Even though he started serious writing about 15 years ago and rose to become the chairman, the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Oyo State Branch, (2008 and 2012), his love goes way back his early years. His first published work is a fictionalised biography. His first novel is ISQAR…The Tale of Our Life, then Tango in the City and his third, Footprints of a goddess. He also has a collection of poems is titled, Parallax Masks. His winning work, Egbon of Lagos is about a journalist in Lagos – of Lagos ancestry – who tries to carve a niche for himself in the city. The play, which took about a year from writing to publishing, is inspired by the playwright’s everyday knowledge and experience of Lagos life and the dramatic shenanigans of Nigerian nationhood.
“I’ve always yearned to write from as far back as I can remember. I simply love books. The smell of fresh books at the beginning of every school year was something I always wanted to experience. So it is natural that I read widely and voraciously, particularly literary works, because I simply enjoy reading and learning from good books. And this has greatly influenced my writing. Anything I cannot learn from, I don’t read. Honestly, I am influenced in some way by everything I read. I have just completed reading The Wizard’s Legacy by an American named Craig Kairnes.”
My winning ace
Indeed, Bello out did himself with the Egbon of Lagos published in September, last year which typifies an African literary work in contemporary frame. On the winning ace that stood the work out from the over 100 others, the playwright said: “The metaphor in the play may have caught on with the judges. But I want anyone who wants to really find out what makes it worthy of attention to get a copy and read it. It is important to note that winning one prize does not make me an expert on what judges look for. It would be preposterous for me to claim otherwise.”
When I’m not writing
Apart from writing, Bello, who is an Executive Director of a non-governmental organisation in Ibadan, is at the forefront of enlightenment. He spends his time reading and mentoring young ones to read, and, if possible, write.
“I utilise most of my time now reading, writing, editing works of young writers; and propagating enlightenment through arts and literary activities and mentoring young people in discovering the joy of reading as a mark of a cultured mind and encouraging those who wish to write to do so. My words to the young are: be a book-friendly person and improve your mind…. read a book today!”
He is working on another play and jotting down the skeleton of another novel. But, according to him, “I’m not talking about those ones yet”.
