Category: Life – The Midweek Magazine

Title:   Adventures from the 1910s Unsinkable

Author:    Danielle Anyanwu

Reviewer: Kingsley Alumona

Publisher:  Faunteewrites Books

Pagination:  138

 

Whenever the unmistakable name Titanic is mentioned, most peoples’ minds conjure up awe for the 1912 Royal Mail Ship (RMS) ‘Titanic’ ship and the 1997 award-winning ‘Titanic’ movie.

However, while the RMS ‘Titanic’ and the ‘Titanic’ movie were innovations of the nineteenth century, there is yet another recent version of the Titanic, this time, under a different name and in a book version.

The new fictional narrative, ‘Adventures from the 1910s – Unsinkable’, begins on land and ends in an open freezing ocean. The forty-eight-chapter, hundred-and-twenty-page book recently published by Faunteewrites Books, in the United Kingdom, is written by 12-year-old Danielle Anyanwu, a year seven student of Ursula’s Convent School, London.

The story begins with a moment of frenzy for the Norflooks, a London family of four, comprising two ill-mannered children and care-free parents. Isabella (nine years old), James (fifteen), and their parents, Mr and Mrs Norflooks are enthusiastic to boarding the newly built ‘Titanic’ ship to America. However, Isabella is hesitant to leaving because her best friend, Anastasia, would be not be going with her.

On getting to the ‘Titanic’, Mr Norflook mutters in awe, “The unsinkable ship is right in front of my face!” As fate would have it, Anastasia is on-board the ship too to visit her father in America-but she is alone, because her mother did not like her and is ready to get rid of her because she is autistic. Isabella and her family are happy to unite with Anastasia in the ship.

The Norflooks also make friends with Mr and Mr Mantoo and their three daughters-Alice, Rosemary, and Daphne. Alice, the eldest child, is a waitress in the Norflooks’ first-class suite. Luxury parties, dinners, and the like, are prominent in the first-class deck, and the Norflooks and the Mantoos enjoy them all.

Fortunately for Anastasia, her two cousins-Maggie and Jasper-and their parents Mr and Mrs Anderson are on-board the ship too. Most of the time, the Norflooks, the Mantoos, and the Andersons do not get along well, and they sometimes get into verbal fights.

One night, Isabella has a dream where she is an adult and the ship becomes flooded and she sinks with it. Days later, Jasper and Maggie wander into the third-class section of the ship, where people sleep on bunk beds, and also into the depth of the ship, where the crewmen abide. They are caught by some of the crewmen, and their punishment is to work with the crewmen till they get to America.

The trouble in the ship begins when Jasper, Maggie and the crewmen notice water on the floor of the engine room. The ship is sinking. Lifeboats are release to evacuate women and children-and some few rich men who bribe their ways into the boats. But James and his father do not make it into any of the boats-only Isabella, her mother, the Mantoos, and the Andersons make the boats.

In the height of the commotion, at the point when even James and his father are expecting death, they see Anastasia crying. After going through the pain and sacrifice of securing a boat for her-at the point when the ship is plunging almost vertically into the ocean-James stumbles on Dixie at the stern of the ship. Dixie is a causal friend of Isabella and Anastasia, and this is the first time they are seeing her in the ship.

James, his father and Dixie are among the thousands of people struggling to survive in the freezing ocean. Somehow, the three of them find a wood which helps them to float. The hopelessness of the situation is properly captured by Dixie, who cries out: “We’re somewhere in the middle of the ocean, and everyone is dead. I’m going to die, and my parents will cry.” Finally, just like in the ‘Titanic’ movie, a boat comes for them, and they are once again reconnected with their families.

Without mincing words, this is probably the first time an African, a 12-year-old girl for that matter, is bringing another dimension to the ‘Titanic’ narrative. And she did it in simple and witty ways that the reader is left astonished.

Reading this book, you feel as if you are on-board the ‘Titanic’, living and experiencing every inch of the open sea, fun, revelry, fashion, food, fear, disaster, death, and everything in between.

In the book, the young author displays a significant knowledge of the life and the style of the 1910s, something that is unusual for someone her age to delve into, not to mention to understand. Her description of the clothes, jewelleries and mannerism; and her explanation of the dining and speech etiquettes, makes one to wonder if she existed in the early-twentieth century.

Also, the author tries to capture the class and social disparities that were almost ubiquitous in London in the 1910s. This class disparity is encapsulated in chapter thirty-seven of the book when Jasper and his elder sister Maggie descend to the third-class deck, and Jasper peeks into one of the rooms and tells his sister in surprise: “This people are sleeping in bunk beds.” Maggie replies: “Bunk beds? Well, that’s unfortunate!”

About the lessons from the ‘Titanic’ movie, James Cameron, the director of the movie, says, “Life is uncertain, the future unknowable… the unthinkable possible.” Cameron’s assertion could be likened to the author’s book where the unpredictability of life is at bare.

The only two things that need revision in the book is the polishing of the dialogues and the indention of the paragraphs. The section breaks need to be looked into too. Apart from these flaws, the theme and the narrative of the book are intriguing. Moreover, the fact that the book is written by a 12-year-old author is something worth celebrating, encouraging and reading.

While reviewing the ‘Titanic’ movie in 2012, in The Atlantic magazine, Meslow Scott described it as “a great movie for 15-year-old girls, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a great movie for everyone else too.” After reading Danielle Anyanwu’s ‘Adventures from the 1910s – Unsinkable’, you would agree that it is a young adult’s book, but that does not mean it is not a great book for everyone else too.

• Alumona, a writer and journalist, lives in Ibadan

 

By Ozolua Uhakheme, Assistant Editor (Arts)

The Ben Enwonwu Foundation, in collaboration with Alliance Française/Mike Adenuga Centre, Lagos and Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos, and supported by Society of Nigerian Artists will hold the eight edition of its monthly series of talks Point of View on June 29.

Venue is Alliance Française/Mike Adenuga Centre, Ikoyi, Lagos. Themed Preserving Artists Legacies: Foundations, Archives and Generational Art Patronage, the talks aim to highlight the importance of preserving artists’ estates; including cultural influence and contribution to knowledge.

Guest speakers at the event include Hannah O’Leary, Bimpe Nkontchou,  Ngozi Edozien, Prof Bruce Onobrakpeya, and Dotun Sulaiman.

The panel will be moderated by Oyinda Fakeye, Artistic Director, Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos. Please note that all COVID-19 protocols will be observed and seating will be limited to ensure social distancing.

This event is proudly supported by the Society of Nigerian Artists, Alliance Française Lagos, Centre for Contemporary Art Lagos, CIL Acquico Ltd, Five Cowries Art Education, Jackson, Etti & Edu,Vanguard, Ventures Platform, BusinessDay, Toff Resources Nigeria Ltd,Connect Nigeria, TSA Contemporary Art Magazine, EKO Trends, Enviro news Nigeria, The Lagos Weekender, The Sole Adventurer, Wildflower PR and Omenka.

 

 

By Evelyn Osagie

The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has pledged its continued support for authors towards ensuring adequate protection for their works in line with the provisions of the Copyright Act.

Its Director-General, Mr. John O. Asein, gave this assurance during deliberations with the executives of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) on a visit to his office.

Asein charged ANA to reach out to other critical stakeholders to forge a formidable partnership to curb the prevalence of book piracy in Nigeria.

He also called for the review and adoption of the National Book Policy to address all aspects of the book sector, including rights management and protection.

He  noted that the rights of authors in Nigeria should be adequately protected to guarantee quality writing and sustain a book industry that would promote quality education.

Asein observed that most authors were either oblivious of their rights or were negligent in their dealings with other players in the book chain, thereby making it easier for pirates to have a field day exploiting their copyright protected works while they get little or no return from their intellectual investments.

He urged ANA to support the NCC to ensure that more authors understood the basics of copyright and how best to check the unwholesome practices of pirates and other parasites in the book industry.

Asein further expressed displeasure that despite the book industry being the very reason for the global emergence of the copyright system, “literary authors do not have much to show for their labour”. He described the visit of ANA as a wake-up call for all stakeholders in the sector to pay more attention to the rights of authors.

Thanking Yusuf Ali (SAN) for his consistent support of authors and the activities of ANA, he called on other well-meaning Nigerians to support the association and join the renewed effort to make copyright work for the writer.

The National President of ANA, Dr. Camillus Chima Ukah, who led ANA delegation,  commended the Director-General for his spirited efforts towards the fight against piracy in the country, the high point of which was the recent seizures of container loads of pirated books at the Tin Can Port in Lagos, resulting from the proactive collaboration of NCC with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

Ukah noted that the unwavering efforts of the DG and his team had impacted positively on the anti-piracy campaign. He assured that ANA would intensify its collaboration with the NCC in the fight against piracy and other copyright abuses.

Asein assured of the commission’s support towards the success of the 40th anniversary, promising that “in view of the status of ANA as a critical stakeholder in the copyright industry, the Commission will continue to initiate relevant policies and programmes that would add value to the association”.

Some NCC Directors in attendance were: Director, Planning, Research and Statistics (PRS), Mr. Bitrus Dauda; Director, Administration, Dr. Idowu Ogunkuade and Director, Public Affairs, Mr. Vincent A. Oyefeso.

Other ANA executives present were Vice President, Hajia Farida Mohammed; Executive Secretary, Mr. Hycinth Obuseh among others.

 

By Ozolua Uhakheme

The heat is on at the on-going Nigerian Idols. Contestants are keeping up with the pace.  At the last edition, the astonishing renditions of the five contestants were highly commended by the judges, who also encouraged them to put in their best.

In particular, Kingdom Kroseide’s performance was trailed by praises from the judges.

Other contestants Faith Onyeje, Comfort Alalade, Akunna Okey, and Francis Atela also performed marvelously well. Unfortunately, it was also a time that saw Emmanuel Elijah’s evicted.

The judges gave Kingdom a standing ovation as he performe jazz genre song “Feeling Good” by Nina Simone and Pop lyrics “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars. He took control of the stage, with much excitement from the judges and the audience, and commendation from Seyi Shay who said “your vocal performance was amazing, you are the strongest vocalist in this competition,” while Mr. P, stated thrice “This is your kingdom”, you will shine and go places.”

It was quite exciting with the contenders displaying exceptional skills in their stage performances to make it to the next episode on June 20.

Faith sang Someone you Loved, and Would rather go Blind, with comments from Seyi Shay eulogising him saying “You look incredible, I love your vocals,” and Obi Asika with the words, “You deserve to be part of the top five, you sang the song beautifully.”

Mr. P was not left out as he advised that Faith should not stop playing the guitar as it adds colour to his rendition. Comfort, who also sang beautifully, thrilled the judges and the audience with the song Think out Loud and Save the Last Dance for Me; likewise Akunna performed Put a Spell on You by Nina Simone and Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus.

Francis also excites with Too Good at Goodbyes and Hello by Lionel Richie. DJ Sose was impressed by his performance and said to him “You brought Las Vegas to Lasgidi.”

The elated Seyi also put in good words that his voice never disappoints her. “Well done,” she added.

The competition continues till July 11, when the winner will go home with a recording contract with a leading record label and N50, 000,000 (Fifty Million Naira) worth of prizes.

Nigerian Idol is proudly sponsored by Rite Foods’ Bigi soft drink with variants such as the Bigi Cola, Bigi Orange, Bigi Apple, Bigi Bitter Lemon, Bigi Soda Water, Bigi Lemon & Lime, Bigi Tropical, Bigi Chapman, Bigi Tamarind, Bigi Cherry Cola, Bigi Ginger Lemon, and the Bigi Ginger Ale.

Other Rite Foods’ products comprise the Rite Spicy, Bigi Beef, and Rite Sausages which have been the mark of excellence for the industry, while its Bigi Premium Table Water, produced with global best practices in purification, offers quality, freshness, confidence, and reliability.

Established in 2007 as a subsidiary of Ess-Ay Holdings, Rite Foods’ inventiveness has earned high recognition in the energy drinks market with the first-ever packaged polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle brands for the Fearless Red Berry and Fearless Classic.

 

 

 

By Gbemisola Adeoti

The world owes this bespectacled bard

a garland of coral beads and gold.

More than the wag of Wakajaye,

he wrenches mirth from melancholy’s mouth

and restores reason for the season

to wear again, its armour of humour;

a world that winks at its spastic saviour

on the steady cross of rumour

a world of schemed ache and tumour.

 

I listened to the bard

echoing in ancient thoughts and tongues

what the baobab says to the forest:

Eti roo!

“In the clan of peace,

election without acrimony

is like divorce without alimony”.

 

When a talkative dove is axed

and yanked off its tottering handle

the bard pensively shrugs his shoulders

and retorts with a plaintive de ja vu:

“the burden of ‘Lenbade

differs from her daughter’s discomfort

‘Lenbade bemoans Greek gifts

neatly wrapped in a ballot box

her daughter desires a sweet tweet

about trinkets in a bullet box.

 

Eti roo!

as the baobab says to the forest:

In the clan of peace,

“a bullet is enough for the wise

who dares to dig out the royal vice”

because no one eats twice

at the barn of a bandit”.

 

In the land of bliss

“he who slays the piper

must taste the barbecue”

and he who sprays the piper.

precipitates a major misfortune”.

 

Eti roo!

as the baobab says to the forest:

in the land of  ease,

uneasy lies the head

being barbed with a broken bottle.

But come to think of it;

when the road is not famished,

“Air condition is permanent

in a moving tricycle”.

BOOK REVIEW

Title: People’s Governor and other stories’

Author: Vincent Akindele

Pagination: 64

The exploration of the efficacy of the mantle of leadership in every group of people consciously or unconsciously, at this time of the country is phenomenal. The disparity that has been preponderant at all levels of governments in Nigeria including the education sector, needs coherent voices for an upgrade.

The power tussle in this book People’s Governor has little or no different to what is obtainable in reality. Forces are put together for the emergence of any particular form of governance to redefine our political and social system.

The book is a representation of the government in our homes as individuals, society, as a member of the society, and the polity of the country, Nigeria as a whole.

It has three stories, which are People’s Governor, The aftermath of annulment, and Elusive Affair.

Two of the stories are about the politics that go on in our higher institutions of learning, and the third, about how individuals in society play on love matters. The issue of politics is equivocal, it will always be contended by scholars and as such, existing authority drives the system including the method of arriving at a leader.

The meritocracy system of government which gives power by merit of criteria serves as systemic leadership among the 200 National Diploma (ND1) entrants of South West Polytechnic, Ibadan.

Dr Tai, the head lecturer of their news reporting class, put the meritocracy system of government in place to cover the lack of nomination by students after telling them the responsibility of a class representative.

This system takes the first person to volunteer into cognizance, so he immediately appoints the first person that volunteers.

Joseph Adesegun, as a virtue of that merit, is to serve as the class representative and the other two are to serve as Assistant Class Rep 1 and 2 respectively. This system of government measures the students’ confidence level, but the wake of the schools’ second week witnesses it’s downfall.

What happens to meritocracy? The weaknesses of meritocracy lead to democracy which is by the highest number of votes. This book continues to tell us the story of Joseph Adesegun who after the dismemberment of the meritocracy system still overwhelmingly wins an election in a community that is a microcosm of the larger society. He beats Morgan Mamoud and Sharon Taylor in a keenly contested election to become the Class Representative. He enjoys the love, respect and admiration of his people, and interestingly, either by design or default, the Class Rep subtly metamorphoses to the Class Governor.

This change serves as a pivot for another change, because it gives birth to faction and a small caucus who take themselves as decision makers against the class governor in The Aftermath of The Annulment.

Some fundamental topics this book focuses on are the electioneering process, election manipulations and abuse of power shape and re-designing of the political and economic progress of the society. The value system, the sense of ethical responsibility and obligations make or mar the future of any particular society. This assertion must have influenced the writing of People’s Governor and Other Stories.

Joseph as a ‘constituted authority’ now rules arbitrarily. He is in power. With the power given him by his people (the fellow students), out of his selfish interest, annuls a popular election. The people, through democratic process, strip him of the power they have gratuitously bestowed on him: he is impeached.

Elusive Affair is a little bit far apart. It is also a story of a young man, Ariyo Omoluabi who suffers a setback in his bid to get a beautiful girl, Teju for marriage. All efforts to convince her that he will be a good husband in future do not hold water as Teju cannot see any reason to marry a struggling young man.

People’s Governor and Other Stories is a unique contribution of Mr. Akindele, a trained Journalist and a communicator, to expose some social and political ills in any human society, particularly in Nigeria, which is no doubt a product of a skilled and gifted communicator. It seems the author makes a deliberate attempt to portray democracy as the most acceptable system of government with record of elections and electioneering. So, People’s Governor is a guide for the youths who have political ambition. The book portrays people, politics, power, providence and money as determinants of fate and destiny.

It is a literary work aimed at educating the readers on how to manage popularity and success in politics and governance. It shows that abuse of people’s mandate and misuse of political power could terminate a promising political career and ambition. It also teaches the right approach to making relationships.

This 64-page story is highly relatable to students at all levels, school administrators and the people of the country.

It is written in an impressive language quite above the pedestrian. It is lucid and devoid of any iota of ambiguity in the presentation. It is written in flowing prose pleasantly laden with accurate figurative expressions. The diction is very appropriate.

This book is a commendable work of art. It is indisputably, a compulsory read for students of all fields of studies, teachers, guardian and counselors, politicians and all lovers of good books.

By Segun Ajayi

At a challenging period when rising cost of living comes handy as excuse, You Are Great Initiative (YAGI), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), has not relented in its service to humanity.

In its latest effort, the organisation founded by Mrs. Oluremi Fagunwa-Ogunleye donated gifts and cash to the Little Saints Orphanage on Ekoro Road, Abule-Egba, Lagos. According to Fagunwa-Ogunleye,  the organisation has not only kept faith with its quarterly outreaches to widows and less-privileged children, the donation coincided with the third year anniversary of the NGO.

Penultimate Saturday, all roads led to the orphanage where Fagunwa-Ogunleye and her entourage were received by a staff of the orphanage, Mrs. Tola Abiodun.  She expressed appreciation for the kind gesture, more especially at a time like this. Presenting the gifts, Fagunwa-Ogunleye reiterated her commitment to serving humanity even when faced with limited resources.

She also called on all well-meaning individuals and organisations to devote resources to the welfare of the less-privileged.

Fagunwa-Ogunleye, a business woman hails from Ekiti but lives in Lagos. Her philanthropy had taken her to the Southwest states. She hopes to reach out to other geo-political zones in the future.

By Ozolua Uhakheme, Assistant Editor (Arts)

Unplanned urbanisation, waste management and pollution are among challenges confronting the city of Lagos with a population of 21.3 million – the second largest metropolitan area in Africa, after Cairo in Egypt.

In response to this environmental challenge, Architect Eddy Eguavoen Foundation has called for entries –architectural solutions to the problem of plastic pollution – from architectural designers for this year’s Voen Foundation Architecture competition tagged Lagos: Plastic City Architecture Competition 2021.

According to a statement by the organisers, participants are expected to design creative architectural solutions to plastic pollution in Lagos.

The competition is open to students, graduates and young architects around the world. It allows groups (4 people maximum) to submit projects and all group members’ names must be included when filling the registration form. But, if you want to add or remove group members after submitting the registration form, you can email (voen.foundation@voenassociates.com) to make group member changes to your registration.

“We are not going to limit the scale or type of architecture your design should represent. The only requirements are that your designs must aim to solve the issue of plastic pollution and must use Lagos, Nigeria as a context. Your design is a single house that makes efficient use of recycled or up-cycled plastic, a master plan for a community that engages in plastic recycling and uses it as their way of generating income or even an industrial building or master plan that presents a creative way to combat plastic pollution,” it said.

IN 2020, the maiden competition attracted over 100 contestants from across the world. Contestants designed floating housing solutions for communities-in-need, which was inspired by the Makoko Community.

Last year two ARCON members, Ladi Lewis and Kayode Anibaba were on the panel of judges along with Ladi Olatunde, Usman Mohammed, Soye Oni, Debo Adesanya and others.

Applicants can access the link www.voenassociates.com/voenfoundation for details.

The various winners and submissions from the 2020 competition were not only incredible but also inspiring.

The winners were first prize international Lloyd Martins (Water No Get Enemy), first prize Nigerian (Shola Ashogbon, Sanniramat Sodiq, Adedokun Jamiu and Daniel Olufemi (The sea stars), second place winner Mekemta Jodel Bismarc, Takam Kenmogne, Sidoine Constant (Bio-Shelter Floating City), and third place winner Masoud Abedimoghadam and Zahra Fattahi (Circles of Hope).

This year, the competition’s theme focuses on plastic pollution, which is an issue in various megacities including Lagos.

Plastic pollution has been a growing issue for decades and there have been various solutions presented by different global actors and bodies such as governments and international organisations.

“As architects and urban designers, it is important for us to be involved in this process and Lagos is a city that has seen bleak and limited amounts of solutions that respond to the context of the city. This is what led us to this year’s competition theme.

Unlike the previous competition, Lagos: City of Water, your design does not need to have a relationship with water. The context can be any part of Lagos whether on land or water. It is also important for your design to engage with the local Lagos community and urban context and should not be a lone piece of architecture.

The top designs will not only address plastic pollution and the point mentioned above, but also take microplastic into account as well as the harmful fumes plastic can emit when exposed to heat,” it added.

The first place winner – international contestant will receive a cash prize of fifty Euro (€500), while first place winner -Nigerian contestant will receive ¦ 300,000. Second and third place winners will get €250/¦ 150,000 and €150/¦ 90,000 respectively. There will be ten honorable mentions, 20 finalists and Founder’s choice.

Registration opened last Sunday while submissions will open July 30 till August 20. Jury for the competition includes Iwoje Eguavoen, Arc Ladi Olatunde, Odaro Eguavoen, Arc Usman Mohammed, Solomon Ofoaiye, Osarogie Edo-Osagie, Lloyd Martins and Debo Adesanya.

Many guests arrived on time for the virtual presentation of Reflections: An Anthology of thoughts on Nigerian Movie Industry – Pioneers, Creativity & Tenacity, written by veteran journalist and media trainer, Femi Akintunde-Johnson, popularly known as FAJ. It was held recently.

The presentation attracted a capacity crowd including many artistes and directors from Nigerian Film Industry as well as veteran journalists, clergymen, women and friends of the author.

Also at the presentation was Pastor Tunde Bakare, the Overseer of Citadel Global Community Church (formerly The Latter Rain Assembly), and his wife, Layide.

The chairman of the event, Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, the Group MD of CMC-Connect Ltd and president of Africa Public Relations Association, commended the author for his daring and fun nature, which made him take up projects that led to some growth the Nigerian entertainment industry witnessed in the 90s and 2000s.

In his remark, FAJ said:  “Contrary to the usual pattern of writing history from the premise of past events, the history of motion pictures in Nigeria is a more difficult assignment, as the industry is still a thriving and continually evolving sector of the Nigerian economy and society. As you can see, it’s still an ongoing project…a nightmare for anyone trying to document its contours and eras. Players change, trends evolve and transitions happen. In the last three months, after writing in the present tense, I have had to revert to the past tense with the demise of Chico Ejiro and Uncle Ladi Ladebo…for example.”

Continuing, FAJ said: “A lot of patience is required … actors, directors, and other workers in the industry are forever nomadic, sort of…and where the internet can be misleading or would sometimes take you off course, you’d need the interventions of real players to correct and validate available information and data. My debt of gratitude to those who responded positively to our prods and queries…and those who continue to support our efforts all through the decades.”

Pastor Bakare, prayed that the author would have more grace to cover more grounds in all his endeavours. He also praised the veteran journalist for his positive contributions to the development of the film industry in Nigeria.

The book, Reflections, is over 300 pages and focuses on the history, creativity, and growth of the Nigerian film industry. It is available in e-book and paperback formats, both online (Amazon and Smashwords) and in Nigeria through the author’s website (https://fajswhatnots.wixsite.com/fajalive – or by private placements).

Other guests present at the unveiling were Kate Henshaw, Joke Silva, MFR; Fidelis Duker, Steve Ayorinde, Lanre Arogundade, Azuh Arinze, Lancelot Imuseun, Edmond Enaibe, Chris Obi-Rapu, Dr. Kunle Hamilton, Sesan Ekisola, Peace Osigwe-Anyiam, Yomi Opakunle, Yinka Akanbi, Sola Osofisan, Marcel Okeke, Hussein Shaibu, Lampe Omoyele, Deji Adeagbo, Lemi Ghariokwu, Nyanknno Osso, Femi Odugbemi, Dr. Funke Omidire, Chinelo Chikelu, Mike Effiong, Pastor Kayode & Titi Adeosun, Prof. Akin Adesokan, Ganiat Meshioye, Matthew Simpa, Sola Adewunmi, Pastor & Mrs. Funsho Ige, Soibifaa Dokubo, Johnson Onime and Dr. Arnold Udoka,

Former Guardian On Sunday editor and culture activist, Jahman Anikulapo moderated the event.

Some critical stakeholders in the movie industry converged on Lagos last Thursday to set agenda for enforcing the National Tobacco Control Act 2015 and the National Tobacco Control Regulations 2019 provisions. The summit is to forge a code of practice towards a smoke-free-Nollywood. Undoubtedly, the entertainment industry has made appreciable inroad on the globe, so it is time for it to align with global best practices as regards promotion of public health and healthy lifestyles, Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME report.

Tobacco is a killer and single most preventable cause of death in the world. Currently, about eight million people die annually from tobacco use, and if nothing is done to reverse or halt the epidemic, tobacco-related deaths could rise to 10 million annually by 2030, according to Executive Director, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa, (CAPPA), Mr. Akinbode Oluwafemi.

He said of the eight million deaths, 1.3 million are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke, adding that exposure to smoking on screen has great influence on kids taking up the smoking habit.

Oluwafemi, who spoke at the stakeholders’ summit tagged Smoking In Movies, organised by CAPPA in Ikeja, Lagos, stated that with tobacco advertising ban in place in most countries, the tobacco industry was embracing covert below-the-line platforms to keep their products in the hearts and minds of potential customers.

“We strongly think that going beyond enforcing the law, as stakeholders, it is now time for us to start the discourse on some basic code of conduct for the industry as it relates to smoking in movies. There are areas we want stakeholders here present to consider.

“They include adult rating for films with smoking scenes, strong anti-smoking adverts, anti-smoking health warnings, certified pay offs, stopping identification of tobacco brands, total ban on tobacco products placement and stopping glamourisation of smoking,” he said.

The task before the summit was how to understand the provisions of the law, how practitioners who are concerned about public health, economic and other costs of tobacco consumption would be active in the smoke-free Nollywood initiative.

He noted that streaming giant Netflix in 2019 came out with a strong statement expressing commitment to stopping depiction of smoking in all its original TV programming rated TV-14 and below or PG-13.

According to him, Netflix said: “Netflix strongly supports artistic expression. We also recognize that smoking is harmful and when portrayed positively on screen can adversely influence young people. Going forward, all new projects that we commission with ratings of TV-14 or below for series or PG-13 or below for films, will be smoking and e-cigarette free—except for reasons of historical or factual accuracy.”

As far back as 2004, the five major companies— Disney (2004), AT&T’s Warner Bros. (2005), Comcast’s Universal (2007), Sony (2012) and Viacom’s Paramount (2013) began publishing policies aimed at addressing smoking depiction in movies.

The summit, which featured two panel sessions, discussed issues on building stakeholders’ agenda for enforcing the NTC Act 2015 and the NTC Regulations 2019 provisions on smoking in the entertainment industry; as well as charting a roadmap for achieving a stakeholders’ code of practice towards #smokefreenollywood.

It attracted participants from Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Nigeria Police Force, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, Nigerian Films and Video Censors Board, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Actors Guild of Nigeria, Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures  Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Gatefield Limited,  Kannywood Women Association of Nigeria, Nigeria Heart Foundation and Directors Guild of Nigeria.

In her paper Tobacco as a public health menace, Associate Professor of Public Health, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Dr. Oluwakemi Odukoya, disclosed that tobacco caused over two million deaths from cardiovascular diseases each year. She warned that even though tobacco was presented to be socially acceptable, it contained lots of chemicals that do significant damage to the human body. She said tobacco contained nicotine, which is an addictive substance that forces people who use it to want to use it more and more, adding that all forms of tobacco use were harmful.

According to her, smoking during pregnancy can cause ectopic pregnancy, placenta abruption, placenta previa, preterm birth, and birth defects of mouth and lip (cleft palate). She said tobacco consumption in Nigeria in 2015 stood at 18.5 billion sticks, resulting to 591 million dollars economic losses within same year.

“Unfortunately, those who should know the risk of tobacco use still get hooked to it. So, to stop those who are addicted to tobacco is an uphill task…Tobacco is capable of changing the way one’s brain function to the extent that it is difficult to for such people to stop tobacco use,” she added.

To expand the fight against the tobacco epidemic, she recalled that the World Health Organisation introduced the MPOWER package of six proven policies.

The policies, which monitor tobacco use and prevention, protect people from tobacco smoke, offer help to quit tobacco use, warn about the dangers of tobacco, enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, and raise taxes on tobacco, can reverse the tobacco epidemic and prevent millions of tobacco-related deaths.

Acknowledging Nigeria’s huge success in the fight against tobacco use in the last 15 years, the Sub-Regional Coordinator for West Africa, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Hilda Ochefu, said tobacco was the single most-preventable cause of death worldwide. She observed that as Africa was making a slow but steady progress towards putting in place tobacco control measures to protect millions of citizens from deadly consequences of tobacco use, tobacco companies has continued to make in road into Africa.

This, she said, is because Africa has a large young population, especially Nigeria, which makes us a potential market for tobacco companies’ current and emerging products.

“With this in mind, the tobacco industry continues to take covert and overt steps to initiate our youths. Globally, the entertainment industry is used to promote various lifestyles. The Nigerian entertainment industry, particularly, has a huge influence on pop culture in Africa and across the world. The tobacco industry understands the strong influence of movies and music and now exploits them to promote an alternative and false lifestyle,” she added.

In his paper, Legal and policy frameworks towards effective tobacco control in Nigeria: Journey So far, Mr. Abraham Agbons Emmanuel Tobacco Control Unit, Federal Ministry of Health, Abuja, said the Nigerian Tobacco Control Act Sec.12 (1) defines “tobacco advertising and promotion to include any form of commercial communication, recommendation or action with the aim, effect or likely effect of promoting a tobacco product or tobacco use directly or indirectly.’ It also provides for comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising and promotion stating ‘no person shall promote or advertise tobacco or tobacco products in any form”.

But, Sec. 12 (4) of the Act provides for exceptions to the ban on tobacco advertising and promotion for certain types of communications including for depictions of tobacco products or tobacco use in media where the depiction is purely incidental or is justified by reasons of historical accuracy or legitimate journalist or artistic expression,  where the depiction is required for education purposes; provided no payment or other consideration was offered or made by a tobacco manufacturer, seller, or any person acting on their behalf or any genuine political, social or scientific commentary about tobacco products or tobacco use; provided no payment or other consideration was offered or made by a tobacco manufacturer, seller or any other person acting on their behalf.

In a communiqué issued at the end of the summit, participants resolved on the following: Immediate commencement of enforcement of the ban on Tobacco Advertising Promotion and Sponsorships as contained in the NTC Act 2015 and the NTC Regulations 2019; Set up a working group of practitioners working collaboratively with the regulatory agencies to come up with a Code of Practice for practitioners in the media and entertainment space as regards smoking in movies; Increased awareness creation on the NTC Act and the TC Regulations by the National Orientation Agency and other relevant agencies with specific focus on the (Tobacco Advertisement and Sponsorship (TAPS) menace in movies and music videos. Also, sensitisation visits to the regulatory and enforcement agencies; Regular interface by practitioners and regulators in the relevant agencies to achieve smoke-free media and entertainment sector; Adequate monitoring of spaces that kids interface including cartoons for tobacco industry activities; Establish Tobacco Control Desk in all the enforcement agencies for enforcement exercises at national and state levels.