THE poet, essayist and political activist, Odia Ofeimun, has consistently argued that literature can indeed save a people. Nowhere was this assertion made truer than in Ibadan last week Wednesday, when writers and performers came together in a concerted effort to use literature not just to draw attention to, but to lend a helping hand to victims of a natural and man-made disaster.
Venue was the Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State (BCOS) open ground at Bashorun area of the ancient city of Ibadan. The writers had come to read and perform and by so doing, draw public sympathy to plight of the victims of the flood disaster and so offer material and monetary donations to help cushion their distress.
Headlining the event was former House of Representatives member, former president of ANA and award-winning author, Dr. Wale Okediran. Of significance was the relaunch of his book, After the Flood, which he wrote way back in the 1980s but which only got published in 2003. The novel deals with the aftermath of a similar flood on the same Ogunpa river, where the recent flash flood wreaked havoc on the same hapless citizens of Ibadan some 31 years ago.
Clearly, it was bad history that had repeated itself. And the writers were harsh on the human factor that allowed that history to repeat itself 31 years after.
Niyi Fasanmi was relentless in his scathing criticism as he read to the audience ? including the Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Moses Adeyemo and his courtier of commissioners (Information and Orientation, Bosun Oladele, Environment, Dawuda Wasiu, Health, Lateef Olopenia) ? from his work, how badly mis-governance easily stood out as the main cause of the human and material tragedy that befell Ibadan citizens.
Fasanmi stated that his collection of short stories was prophetic having just been published a few months before the Ibadan flood disaster. It catalogues how government has left the nation?s cities largely unplanned and without the necessary infrastructure that would mitigate natural disasters.
Ofeimun, too, came hard on government with reading from his collection, I?ll Ask Questions with Stones if they take my Voice. With his pidgin poem, ?Pidgin Stew?, he tended to tone down the rough edges with a bit of humour. He also read a poem in honour of the late Bola Ige, governor of old Oyo State, when the first flood visited, who had to channelise the angry Ogunpa river.
Nevertheless, in his advice to the current government, Ofeimun stressed that it was human folly that allowed the creation of victims and victimhood possible and that it was also human wisdom that could free people from such folly.
Four students of Theatre Arts, University of Ibadan, under the tutelage of Dr. Tunde Awosanmi, presented a drama piece that captured the various forces at play that made it possible for a disaster such as the Ibadan flood to happen. From conscious environmental degradation by citizens, who block channels with wastes and illegal structures, to contractors colluding with council officials to erect sub-standard structures, and with nature lending a hand, such a disaster would only be a matter of time before it happened.
Awards and prizes Mervyn King Rugby league Cobham Republicans The Ashes
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