By Anote Ajeluorou
Ibadan is a city built on seven hills and running splash of rust and
gold. That was Ibadan, a city that so charmed JP Clark that he wrote the most
admired seven-liner lyrical poem ever written on any city. With its two most
famous learning educational institutions – Government College, Ibadan (GCI) and
University College, Ibadan (UCI) – Ibadan proved to be the Oxford and Cambridge
of a country soon to be delivered from the fetters of colonialism to
independence and these two institutions were poised to play a significant part.
And they did admirably.
But there were also other iconic
Government Colleges that would play a part besides GCI. There were the
Government Colleges at Umuahia and Ughelli, which contributed their own quota
of creative human capitals that would converge at UCI at a critical moment to
define a country’s literary destination. Chinua Achebe, Chukwuemeka Ike,
Christopher Okigbo, all from Umuahia; JP Clark came from Ughelli and Wole
Soyinka from Ibadan. Femi Osofisan would later join this creative club from GCI
as well to form the second generation of eminent Nigerian writers.
Right from UCI campus as
students, they started showing their keen mettle, as writers when they voraciously
read every book they came across. Then Mbari
Club was formed, as baking ground for the literary dough that a nation’s
creative imagination would later feast on; it turned out an elaborate feast not
unlike the fabled imaginary mould of foofoo
in Achebe’s Things Fall Apart set
before in-laws who didn’t see each other until sunset when the mountainous
mould had been considerably reduced. But there’s no exhausting this feast, as
it has bred other bigger feasts for coming generations to savour.
But gradually and as harsh
economic realities began to dawn on the new nation, the cultural landscape
began to shift. A court case involving members of Mbari Club led to its eventual disintegration, with Clark and
Achebe also moving to Lagos to take up jobs as lecturer and broadcaster
respectively in the mid-1960s. While Ibadan still retained its intellectual
base, as first university city in the country, the real place for artistic and
cultural engagement had changed to Lagos, as both economic and cultural capitals.
The city became merely contented as the intellectual breeding ground, with
other cities also playing similar roles with the establishment of other
universities in the 1970s and then the unbridled floodgate that was to follow
in the preceding decades up till the present.
So, Ibadan lost its pre-eminence
as cultural capital, and the hiatus was to remain so for decades, as the only
significant literary matters came from the now University of Ibadan long after
its pioneering University College era had ceased. Not even its state chapter of
Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) could do much to revive the city’s
flagging fortunes. While other cities bided for and hosted the association’s
yearly convention, Ibadan looked on helplessly, as it couldn’t muster the will
to host, what with successive state governments that remained impervious and
even hostile to artistic and cultural matters.
But the creative Muse was still
latent all the while. The seven hills brooded over its creative fate and bided
its time. It finally announced itself in 2012, when it sprang a surprise on the
African continent. One of its own, Rotimi Babatunde was declared winner of the
Caine Prize for African Writing, Africa’s prestigious short story prize, worth
US$10,000. As if not down announcing itself, it again came out in bold relief,
with another Ibadan citizen again stunned the literary landscape by winning
Africa’s biggest literary prize, The Nigeria Prize for Literature, worth
US$100,000!
But how did Ibadan get it wrong?
Where did things begin to fall apart for the culturally vibrant city? And how
can things get back to where they were before? Some eminent literary citizens
of Ibadan lent their voices to the fluctuating cultural fortunes of their
beloved city.
Femi Osofisan, in his University
Lecture delivered in 2005, The City as
Muse: Ibadan and the Efflorescence of Nigerian Literature
TM Aluko, Flora Nwapa, Niyi Osundare, Isidore Okpewho,
Kole Omotoso, and Harry Garuba. So what is this other bond that unites these
famous names?
The answer, simple enough, is that they are all
graduates of the University of Ibadan!
Yes, incredible as it may sound, all these names we have mentioned, as
well as several others in the field of African literature, are our
products—that is, alumni and alumnae who have sat in our classrooms, slept in
our halls of residence, played on our sports fields, or strutted on the boards
of our Arts Theatre! Most in fact began their literary careers right on this
very campus, editing or making contributions to the students’ magazines.
And then, when we step out beyond the walls of the
campus, and enter into the city itself, we find that the list of ex-Ibadan
residents who have achieved fame as writers and artists lengthens even more
astonishingly, to include names like Cyprian Ekwensi, Amos Tutuola, the South
African Ezekiel Mphalele, the Malawian Felix Mthali, the Englishman William
Boyd, and so on!
The city of Ibadan, and particularly the campus of the
University of Ibadan, have played a unique role in the history of Nigerian
literature. Here, where we live and work, has been the place where modern
Nigerian literature was born and where, until recently, it was steadily
nurtured and sustained.
Furthermore, Ibadan as the capital of the turbulent
Western Region, was also a place where politics had a most robust life,
particularly at that period in the country’s history when the struggle for
Independence was at its peak, and later, in the early ‘60s, when the first
governments were trying to find their feet. The games of power played by rival
politicians and political parties with their colourful paraphernalia and
grandiloquent speeches and posturing were more than sufficient fodder for any
literary imagination, and we will soon see the harvest in such works as Soyinka’s
A Dance of the Forests [1963] or
Kongi’s Harvest [1967], or TM Aluko’s Kinsman
and Foreman [1966], or Achebe’s A Man of the People [1966]. In a
similar manner, when after Independence things began to fall apart, Ibadan was
also a major centre of the rapidly unfolding chaos when the Action Group party
in control of the Western Region split into bitter factions and the
consequences later led to the fratricidal civil war. It was clearly the spur of
such works as Okigbo’s Poems Prophesying
War and, later of Clark’s Casualties
[1970]. The city’s affairs, therefore, have always been of a dimension so
important as to impact directly on national politics, far more than any other
city in the country, and also on the literary imagination. It is natural then,
that this should be a place where the creative impulse of writers would be
continuously and abundantly watered.
Thus, in addition to all the previous factors—i.e. a
highly educated community of young men and women, living in an ambiance of
enlightened curiosity, in an ancient and bubbling multi-cultural city, plus the
strong stimulus provided by sympathetic expatriates—we must also add the
political temper of the period we are concerned with in this discussion, that
is the heady decade stretching from about 1958 to 1967. It was certainly a period of great
excitement, especially among the educated elite of which the writers were
members, and of an adventurous political drama in which some of them were
direct participants.
…What followed, I regret to say, was a complete rout. Abruptly, almost as
abruptly as it had begun, the Mbari club died out, its members dispersed to
silence, and the Black Orpheus after
some fitful gasps for life, subsided into a limbo. The reason for this debacle was, simply, the
political disaster that befell the nation, and the descent to civil war or, if
you prefer, the Biafran war that began in the mid-70s.
Fortunately I
do not have to go into any extensive narration before this audience about the
Biafran war. You all remember too well yourselves the causes as well as the
consequences. The politicians, to put it very simply, had simply messed up our
independence with their quarrels and their insatiable avarice
Tade
Ipadeola
Ibadan
is to African Literature what Harlem is to African-American literature. There
was the big literary ferment here in the sixties which was never meant to be
the constant condition of Nigerian or African literature - it was for a reason
and a season. At the same time it has to be said that Ibadan was never really
'silent' after the pioneering era of J.P Clark, Mabel Segun, Wole Soyinka,
Christopher Okigbo, Elechi Amadi and Chinua Achebe. There was the succeeding
wave of Molara Ogundipe, Niyi Osundare, Femi Osofisan, Harry Garuba, Femi
Fatoba and Odia Ofeimun. Then the succeeding wave of Remi Raji, Chuks Okoye,
Afam Akeh, Amatoritsero Ede, Omowumi Segun, Obododinma Oha and so on. Ibadan is
always bleeding talent into other cities. The city is paying a price for not
consciously regarding her literary heritage. The last great governor to
consciously do something for the city's literary progress was Chief Bola Ige.
The libraries in the city are appalling at the moment, there is no major
literary festival for the city and there is no vote for a museum of the city's
literary heritage. What the city has going for it is the sheer weight of
literary tradition at the moment. Also a strong centre of literary gravity
where writers and intellectuals like Rotimi Babatunde, Yomi Ogunsanya, Peter
Akinlabi, Benson Eluma, Niran Okewole, Ayodele Olofintuade, Damilola Ajayi and
Biyi Olusolape still meet for discourse.
For
as long as writers still meet in Ibadan, the city will continue to birth more
writers. Again, Ibadan is a state of the mind. It can be kindled once the mind
is attuned to the city's rhythms. I will rather see the literary productivity
of Ibadan as a system of organic, succeeding waves. Remember that Ibadan is not
just the home of writers, it is also the home of great literary critics. There
are few cities here with that kind of productive tension which keeps both
creatives and critics on their toes. So it is just a moment in the continuum.
When Harry Garuba writes a poem or paper in South Africa, it is still the
spirit of Ibadan on display even though it might not be immediately apparent.
You can say the same about Amatoritsero in Canada or Afam Akeh in Britain. That
some chose to stay within Ibadan and to write from there is just a detail. The
city works in manifold ways.
Fortunately for Ibadan, there is a push among
the city's lovers and elders for a more engaged space for thinking and writing.
There are quiet initiatives from people like Dr Niran Okewole, Mallam Femi
Taiwo, Dr Akin Adesokan, Dr Ebenezar Obadare, Dr Wale Adebanwi, Dax Kumapayi,
Molara Wood and Professor Oka Obono and others to lead civic change within
Ibadan in many ways. If only the official culture apparatus within the
city-space can meet these initiatives halfway, the city's literary ambience can
acquire critical mass once again.
Dr. Wale
Okediran
1.
Ibadan fell into the Literary Silence for three main reasons; Since most of the
Literary figures in the city where in the academia, there was a big migration
in the late 70s and the whole of the 80s of many of these scholars abroad and
to other Nigerian Universities. This 'brain drain' though largely for economic
reasons was also for intellectual pursuits as some of these scholars were
poached by other Local and International Universities to help establish some of
the newer sets of Universities.
ii.
There was a sense of fulfillment among some of these Literary figures who
gradually withdrew from artistic and intellectual activities. In addition, some
of the patrons of the art such as the British Council, the USIS and Leventis
Foundation among others, withdrew from Ibadan when these organizations were
downsized. Unfortunately, the political class failed to fill the resultant gap
left in the city, and so, the situation deteriorated.
iii.
The poor state of the economy in the ancient city, which is largely a Civil
Service town did not encourage the citizens to patronize many of the artistic
and intellectual activities in the city which gradually died a natural death.
In addition, many of the Publishing outfits which hitherto had been in the
forefront of publishing Literary works decided to concentrate more on the
publication of textbooks which was more commercially viable.
2.
The reawakening in literary activities which we are now seeing in the recent
Literary awards is a result of the personal efforts of the writers in question
as well as the various activities put together over the years by organizations
such as the Oyo State Branch of the Association Of Nigerian Authors, Educare
Trust as well as the Alliance Francoise. Apart from organizing literary and
artistic activities, these bodies were also in the forefront of organizing
literary and artistic competitions among writers and artists.
In
addition to the above bodies, the Theatre Art Department of the University of
Ibadan also played a significant role in the resurgence of literary and
artistic activities in the ancient city.
3.
This can be achieved if the various bodies enumerated above can sustain their
artistic and literary activities. For example, when between 1994 and 1996 I was
the Chairman of the Oyo State Branch of ANA, ANA tired to revive the literary
culture by fixing the monthly ANA readings in the homes of many prominent
personalities in the city such as Prof. JF Ade Ajayi, the late Chief Bola Ige,
Prof. Ayo Banjo, late Chief Wale Ogunyemi, Mrs. Mabel Segun, Dr. Tony Marinho
(EDUCARE TRUST) among others. This way, we were able to invite a new generation
of writers and artists through these eminent personalities.
In addition, apart from hosting literary
readings, some of these patrons sponsored literary publications (Chief Bola Ige
sponsored a compilation of writings on Ibadan called, Ibadan Mesiogo while Prof. Ayo Banjo sponsored the publication of a
book of essays and poems on the late Chief Bola Ige and Dr Tony Marinho through
his EDUCARE TRUST hosted many literary activities).
This tradition of using notable personalities
to sponsor and host literary readings has continued till today by the Oyo ANA.
In addition, the establishment of the Ebedi International Writers Residency in
Iseyin, about an hour away from Ibadan in 2010, is my own humble contribution
to the revival of literary and cultural activities in Oyo State and Nigeria as
a whole.
It is important for the Oyo State Government
at all tiers, philanthropists, corporate organization as well as publishers in
Oyo State to buy in to this revival of literary and artistic activities in the
state by supporting all the various bodies mentioned above. They can also
assist by organizing literary competitions, book fairs and the like.
Kolade mosuro
1.
Even the masters saw it gradually growing into decay. There was the
government assault, police interventions, disruption of shows, arrests of
artists and the use of thugs to interrupt shows. Following the war, there
was a palpable cleavage. Some of the masters had engaged in the war and it
created a polarity that weakened the artist club.
The soldiers and the oil boom brought in
money, big money that tainted art. It was now praise-art. It still has
not recovered.
For the artist, more than most, the night is
truncated from lack of electricity. Creative work is not regulated with
time. The inspiration to write, compose or carve comes at any time. The
nights are out of it with no electricity and the days can be quite as bad.
Security concerns have also curtailed the nights making night shows
unattractive.
2.
Ibadan still remains an artist's bedrock. The University of Ibadan
remains an epicentre for all academic activities in the country. It must
be on account of Ibadan's performance and follower-ship that they have been
able to have three people - Osofisan, Okediran and Raji preside over the
affairs of the Association of Nigerian Authors within the past 12 years.
Ibadan has also registered a good complement of publishers than any other
city in the country. Kraftgroits publishers have done very well lately with
poetry and Bookcraft has done well for prose. The Booksellers Ltd has also
elevated bookselling for the good of writers. Ibadan is up and running
because the 'grandchildren' of the masters are now driving the arts in the
city. These 'grandchildren' are the likes of Ayo Olofintuade, Rotimi Babatunde
and Tade Ipadeola.
3.
Mbari was not just book-related. They had carvers, musicians,
actors, playwrights, academics, etc, all gathered under one roof. It was
a great theatre of talents and they were determined against all odds to enjoy
themselves, to bring art to the fore and display art with professionalism. The
result was that revellers and admirers came in hordes. Art and the love of art
grew.
It
will be good if schools introduced literary hour, at least once a week, in the
schools. Students can be made to just wonder wild and read anything; there
should also be structured reading with the intervention of a teacher or of a
guest author. They must produce plays and watch performances by other
schools and professionals.
Take my case, I never visited Mbari but Mbari
was brought to us. I saw Duro Ladipo on stage at Government College, Ibadan. He
was fearful and awesome when he made his appearance on the stage. Through him I
recognised the dignity and power of an Oba.
Ogunde and his troupe also came to the school. Through him I learnt political
satire. It was through him that I learnt about the bitter politics of that
period. Kola Ogunmola also was on stage with us in school and I learnt
tragio-comedy. Our Arts and Dramatic Society in school was therefore strong and
I am therefore not surprised that it produced Osofisan, Sowande and Sofoluwe.
Soyinka's play, The Strong Breed was
the first Nigerian English play we performed on stage. Such was the high
level production of our plays that the Premier of the Region was always a guest
on our closing night.
We just have to go back to the schools. To
penetrate the schools, government must be involved. They must recognize and
embrace creativity as well as champion it.
Rotimi Babatunde
1. Ibadan was a city of
pioneering literary awakening. Why did it fall into silence after the era of
the first & second generation of masters?
Ibadan
remains one of the great literary cities of the world. Since the mid-twentieth
century, writers based in the city have consistently made noteworthy
contributions to world literature. So those familiar with literary life in
Ibadan would disagree with the claim that the city fell into silence after the
first and second generation of Nigerian writers. The Poetry Club, whose members
included Harry Garuba and the late Sesan Ajayi, played a prominent role in
Nigerian literature in the 1990s. And after the turn of the millennium, the
creative energy Ibadan is famous for persisted at other points where writers
congregate in the city, for example Tony Marinho’s Educare and Sola
Olorunyomi’s IFAnet.
2. Now, however, there
appears a new awakening of literary consciousness in Ibadan, with two laureates
in two years (Caine prize & The Nigerian Prize for Literature). What
accounts for this?
Sudden
miracles don’t happen in literature. To illustrate, ‘Bombay’s Republic’, my
story that won the Caine Prize, belongs to a series of historical narratives I
began working on over a decade ago. Along the same line, many writers I know in
Ibadan, including the Nigerian Prize for Literature winner Tade Ipadeola, have
been diligently honing their craft for years. Really, I am only surprised that
it took so long for them to begin winning much coveted literary prizes. And
that trend doesn’t look set to change any time soon, because many of the most
exciting creative minds of this age have Ibadan’s amala and gbegiri coursing
through their veins. These include poets, fiction writers and theatre creatives
like Niran Okewole, Benson Eluma, Jumoke Verissimo, Kunle Okesipe, Ayodele
Olofintuade, Ropo Ewenla and Tosin Gbogi, to mention a few. Even when
circumstances compel the physical absence of a number of them from the city,
they continue to remain part of the Ibadan literary scene. Some of the names I
mentioned, as well as many others that I didn’t, may still be under the radar,
relatively speaking. But cream, as they say, always rises to the top.
3. How can the city's
literary glory be brought back, especially the Mbari-like activities of yore,
like festivals, book exhibitions, etc that it currently lacks?
Several
initiatives, including Laipo Reads at NSIAC, the Ibadan Book Fair, and
Writehouse’s Artmosphere reading series, have sprung up in recent years. These
organisations have been doing a fantastic job in literary programming.
Nevertheless, it is important to note that from the Mbari years of Wole
Soyinka, Ulli Beier, Amos Tutuola, Christopher Okigbo, Duro Ladipo and J. P.
Clark to the present day, literary life in Ibadan has always transcended formal
book events. The American novelist Ernest Hemingway once wrote of Paris,
another famous literary city: ‘There is never any ending to Paris.’ Ibadan residents
likewise say that ‘Ibadan lo mo, oo mo Laipo.’ Roughly translated, this means:
‘You have merely encountered Ibadan, you have not yet experienced its essence.’
The essence of literary life in Ibadan is more to be found in informal
gatherings that hold across the city’s diversity of settings. So you are not
only likely to find writers discussing the virtues of Zimbabwean writer
NoViolet Bulawayo’s new book at elite locations like the University of Ibadan
Senior Staff Club but you are also likely to find them elucidating on the
contrasts between Russian novelists Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky at more
democratic venues like the ever-lively watering holes on Mokola Hill. Like
Paris, there is also no end to Ibadan.
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