Under Gov Chime Reading Culture is being Revived in Enugu State


"…Last year, it was a literary workshop for writers. This time, it was a reading
campaign. In commemoration of this year's World Literacy Day, the group, in
conjunction with the National Orientation Agency, held a one-day reading
campaign entitled "Get Enugu Reading Again". The event, which took place at the
National Library Conference Hall, Enugu, Thursday, September 29, drew
participants from various schools from the state. Also in attendance were
literary enthusiasts from Enugu…"

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Reading culture revived in Enugu
By HENRY AKUBUIRO
Saturday, October 08, 2011
Sun News Publishing

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Last year, it was a literary workshop for writers. This time, it was a reading
campaign. In commemoration of this year's World Literacy Day, the group, in
conjunction with the National Orientation Agency, held a one-day reading
campaign entitled "Get Enugu Reading Again".

The event, which took place at the National Library Conference Hall, Enugu,
Thursday, September 29, drew participants from various schools from the state.
Also in attendance were literary enthusiasts from Enugu.

The reading featured two prominent writers, Uche Peter Umez, multiple
award-winning writer and author of Runaway Hero, and Chinyere Onyemaechi Agabi,
author of many children books, including Nwamba.

In her address, president of the forum, Mrs. Adobi Nwoye, said the support from
literary aficionados in the state and sponsors would help the forum to carry out
its mandate of reviving the reading culture among young people in Enugu State,
as well as sharpening the writing skills of aspiring young writers.
In the keynote address presented by Hon. Augustine Okolie, the State Director,
National Orientation Agency, Enugu State, he remarked that the flag-off of the
reading campaign marked a new dawn in the onward march towards reviving the
reading culture in Nigeria, affirming that that "it is imperative to develop a
reading culture capable of exposing individual (s) to accumulated wisdom
necessary for survival in our contemporary society".

The director iterated that NOA has a core mandate to inform, reorient, mobilize
and enlighten the Nigerian masses, which informed its conjunction with the Coal
City Literary Forum in reviving the reading campaign in the state.

Besides the intrinsic values derivable from reading culture, he emphasized that
"it is important to note that good reading culture has economic consequences.
People who are better than-average readers are also higher-than-average earners
or more likely to have high-paying jobs."
Since the ever increasing growth of technology in Nigeria has brought increasing
demands for higher literary level, he proposed that higher literary level is
needed for success in business and industry, including our everyday lives.

Both guest writers read excerpts from their books, after which they entertained
questions from inquisitive students on their works. In response to the question
on how she managed her writing career with her family responsibilities, Mrs.
Agabi said, though it was not easy to manage both, working with specific
schedules has made it easier to accomplish both tasks. Commenting on the themes
of her work, the writer said every literary work is embedded with themes. For
her, Nwamba echoes the theme of responsibility.

Umez, whose book, The Runaway Hero, made the longlist of this year's NLNG prize,
said in response to the question on how he derived, the idea for the title of
The Runaway Hero came from his visit to Lagos and seeing the abject condition of
an orphanage. The main character in the book, Kachi, he said, ran away from the
orphanage, only to return to become a hero.

When she initially set out as a writer, Mrs Agabi said she was faced with
multiple distractions, but the greatest challenge she has encountered as a
writer is getting the right publishers to publish her works, which are mainly
juvenilia, nowadays that most of them are money-conscious, as well as
circulating her offerings.

On his part, Umez said his books are readily available in major bookshops in
Lagos and Abuja. He said personally he only circulates to schools on request. He
regretted the lack of regular power supply, which militates against the writer's
concentration in Nigeria. He urged the kids to take their studies seriously,
because they are the leaders of tomorrow. "You can either become a hero or a
villain," he cautioned them.

There were further readings from Betty Ezike, who read from Umez's Runaway Hero,
because her writings are predominantly romance, which she said would be a
disservice to read to young minds in the audience.

Books donated by the forum were presented as gifts to the schools by Mr. Abuchi
Ngwu, Director Ministry of Information. They included: Spring Life international
School, Enugu; Providence High School, Enugu; and God's Gift International
School, Enugu.

Speaking to Literary World at the end of the event, Mrs. Nwoye said ELF focused
on schoolchildren this
time in order to catch them young. Lamenting the support from the state
government, she said the event would be much bigger if the Enugu State
government has supported the forum. She also regretted that only a few schools
turned out for the event, whereas invitation was sent to fifty schools in the
state.
Similarly, Ngwu said the reading campaign was a way to re-direct the attention
of schoolchildren to reading instead of engaging in unprofitable past time. "We
are trying to make them have attitudinal change. Reading makes a man. Not all
the prominent people in Nigeria are business tycoon. Some of them made name for
themselves through the pen. Few examples are Professors Chunua Achebe and Wole
Soyinka," he said.

He therefore, called on all stakeholders in the state to join hands to make the
event bigger and support literary arts in Enugu State. "Government should be
more involved, especially the ministry of education," he emphasized.

Also, both guest writers commended the organizers of the event. For Mrs. Agabi,
"though not all the schools invited turned up, it was very impressive. It is s
positive forum for not only the kids but everybody. He noted that an event like
this is a fillip to dwindling reading culture in Nigeria, stressing that
"children should be encouraged to read."

Umez, on his part, considered it "a wonderful event. The turnout was okay. In an
event where you had this number of students is a big plus for enhancing reading
culture in Nigeria. But there is still mush to be done to make this event a
success more than it is today. It should involve the education ministry in the
state and the governor of the state, who should be the chief literacy officer of
the state, as well as the secondary education management board in the state."


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