February 6, 2025
Colloquium

Write yourselves, Nigeria out of poverty, youths told at ReadingCafe 2024

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  • July 14, 2024
  • 9 min read
Write yourselves, Nigeria out of poverty, youths told at ReadingCafe 2024

By Editor

CONVENER, ReadingCafe 2024 Lechi Eke and other book enthusiasts have called on Nigerian youths to look inwards, stir up their creativity and write themselves and their country out of poverty. They also called for better leadership in the country that will give the required opportunities for the youths to invest their talents and energies to excel and shun the ‘japa’ syndrome in search of better living conditions abroad that has become the norm rather the exception.

They spoke recently at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Lagos, during ReadingCafé 2024 that had as theme ‘Salvaging Africa through Literature’. It was organized by Finishedwork Enterprises in conjunction with National Association of Students of English and Literary Studies, UNILAG Chapter and the Department of English, UNILAG. United Bank for Africa (UBA) Foundation donated books that were shared to the students that included such titles as The Deep Blue Between and The Kaya Girlret.

Assistant Director of Programmees at NTA Lagos, Channel 10, Peace Isaac-Yerokun, spoke on Broadcasting and Electronic Media, where she pointed out the need for the reorientation of Nigerians, especially young people through the contents the various media put out. She illustrated a scene where a young man wearing sagged trousers comes before an audience to make a presentation, adding that if his trousers dropped to his ankles exposing his not-too-clean boxers, the shame and embarrassment could deter his peers watching him from sagging their trousers. She urged youths to believe the right things about the country, noting, “We have a culture, let’s portray it through our creation.”

Continuing, Isaac-Yerokun said, “You can see what is going on in the country. Young people feel the only way they can make it now is to ‘jappa.’ A lot of young people can actually change the narrative and begin to look inwards. What is specular about us, they should portray in their creation. They should take time to look at themselves, their age mates, the ‘Gen-Zs’ abroad. What is special about these people? What is about them that they cannot achieve, because the truth is: whatever colour, whether you are white, black or yellow, God made everyone the same. We have the same ability. There is really nothing a white boy can do that a black boy cannot do.

“So, young people should begin to see themselves that they have all it takes. They can make it even while here. They should look at what they can do even while here. It is not by carrying placards; it is not about being volatile, lazy and looking at cheap or easy ways of achieving a purpose. No! They can be great here. They have the ability and all it takes. They should believe in themselves and their abilities and look inwards. Young people should begin to embrace the culture of hard work and not look at easy ways of achieving success. They need hard work to be successful. There are opportunities in Nigeria. Why are foreigners coming in? A lot of Nigerians are selling off what they have, including houses, just to ‘jappa’. Others are buying. Why?”

A lecturer at the Department of English, UNILAG, Dr. Fola Alimi, said ReadingCafé is part of the culture of UNILAG, to engage Town and Gown in order to open the space for students to relate what goes beyond the four walls of the university.

According to him, “This is the 9th year that we are being engaged in ReadingCafe; we have other programmes before these final year students. We have a special year for the final year students. This particular ReadingCafé is a special one. It is the flagship of the Department of English and, by extension, the university. It is something that the university appreciates and encourages as part of the culture of learning and building character and the future of the students.”

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Books donated by UBA Foundation being distributed to the students

The Convener, Eke said ReadingCafé is an avenue for training prospective writers and teaching them to use their skills to salvage society from the ills that beset it. She said it is aimed at promoting literacy among youths, raising young people of great thoughts who will develop writing skills and write themselves out of obscurity and lack. According to her, ReadingCafe is intended to revive interest in books, thus bringing reading back into the activities of young minds. She added that it is also for the promotion of a cultured society for arts, refined men and women and teach them to shun violence and use communication, language, dialogue ,etc to resolve issues, thus creating a healthy and a more secure society.

Eke decried the ills of neo-colonialism on Nigeria and other African countries, adding that it has robbed the continent the many benefits of its great endowments, adding, “Right now, slave trade is still going on, so is neo-colonialism, as well as transference of the country’s natural resources to non-indigenes’ control. The rot in leadership has taken a new dimension.

“So, how do all these concern writers, fledgling writers and book lovers? I will tell you. Book lovers, try to choose books that present the African situation. As book sales rise in this genre, authors would be encouraged to produce more of such books. Writers, write about Africa and the ills that ail her; fledgling writers, please, look into this matter too. Enough of love stories, or let the love themes be woven into the problems of Africa. Let new readers who are going to be leaders tomorrow meet these things in love novels, thrillers, plays, satires, poems, etc.

“Let us gradually begin to create an awareness of these ills with a view to proffering solutions on how Africa’s new leaders can avoid the traps of western civilisation, including the economic colonization of China and others. This is one of the purposes of literature, and this way Africa can be rescued.”

A lecturer in the Department of History and International Studies, Anchor University, Lagos, Dr. Nnanna Iroh, also spoke on ‘The Need to Write at ReadingCafe 2024. He mentioned ethnic nationality, ethnic conflicts as one of the things killing Africa, adding that someone will see a bad leader and adopt him or her, because they’re from the same ethnic group! Dr. Iroh described the state of Africa and Nigeria in particular saying, “Look at the economy. The economy is so bad today because of corrupt tendencies of our leaders. There is high level of corruption in Nigeria. Nigeria is in a sorry state even with abundant natural and human resources.

“The way Nigerians excel in many parts of the world, but most of these people were struggling here. The same thing they are doing over there is what they were doing here and whatever knowledge or experience they have that make them to excel in those parts of the world, they acquired it here. Hunger is another factor. A situation whereby if you throw a seed of corn on the ground, it will germinate to show how fertile our land is. Why should there be hunger in such a country? But because the right people are not in the right places to make food production a priority; we continue to wallow in hunger such that many people go to bed without food.

“To make young people to be instruments in addressing these challenges, we need good leadership. Achebe pointed it out that the trouble with Nigeria is bad leadership; that is because we have wrong people in the places that they should not have occupied. Somebody that looted this country in the past comes with the money, buys the electorate and goes back to power and impoverish the nation further and nobody cares about what he had done. All they are after is who did he give money to? Whoever that benefited from that administration will be satisfied.

“The young ones can only salvage the country through writing by portraying the situation in the country through their writings, rejecting it and deciding not to be part of the situation and not to be part of the wrong way things have been going on.”

Novelist and publisher, Dr. Eghosa Imasuen spoke on Creative Writing. He started by asking the question: Who discovered River Niger? Ultimately, he taught young writers that they should through their writing correct the misinformation of Western media. According to him, “White people said Mungo Park discovered the River Niger, but the Niger wasn’t in a hidden place. It had been there all along with Africans living on its banks. So, how come Mungo Park discovered it? For who?”

Imasuen encouraged young Nigerians to have faith, saying that they could, through their writing, “correct ills and salvage their country. There’s every potential to succeed in this country.”

A media practitioner, Kehinde Okeowo, who spoke on the ‘Pros and Cons of the Digital Media in News Reporting’, said there are opportunities in Nigeria, noting that digital media is a very good opportunity that youth are tapping into. He also said there is the need to salvage the nation’s electoral process through effective digital application.

“We need to salvage our electoral system,” Okeowo said. “We were on that until the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), during the last election, told us that the digital content was supposedly to instil transparent election did not work. We need to have confidence in our election.

“I want to encourage young Nigerians to have hope in the country. I think they can take advantage of the digital economy, digital media, sports, singing; there are so many things they can do and do well even if the person is not employed. All these can provide gainful engagements. I think that once you have a means of livelihood, your life will get a normal direction and from there you can aspire. You can even be President. Young people should not all be looking at leaving the country. But again, I will ask our leaders to encourage young people. Let them see the light after the tunnel.”

Also, young entrepreneur, Catherine Okunola, a 2023 graduate of English and Literary Studies from the University of Lagos, was among the speakers at ReadingCafe 2024. The young lady, who has carved a niche for herself in the area of digital content creation, spoke along that line telling her audience how she stumbled into the industry in her second year at university. Okunola gave a captivating account of some of the contents she has created so far, and how brands are looking for her because of her contents. Today, barely a year out of school, she floats an outfit on digital content creation, and how she is serving the public and in high demand!

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