The author
By Deborah Iorliam
It was Obo Effanga’s 50th birthday and it was coinciding? with the release of a new poetry collection by him with the title To the Sun at Sundown. Nothing could stop literary enthusiasts and friends of arts from celebrating a double cause involving one of Nigeria’s electoral technocrats. Not when the Splendors of Dawn Foundation and Ben200 Foundation could be relied upon to host a book reading under which to wrap up the many sided package, attended by Abuja notables such as Charles Abani of Chemonics International, John Emmanuel of Wazobia FM, Richard Ali of ANA, Festus Okoye of INEC, Samson Itodo of YIAGA Africa, Chido Onumah of AFRIMIL, amongst others.
And so 4pm on August 24, 2019 found all such souls still lost in the pursuit of esoteric enterprises such as poetic communication at Nest One, the venue. The day was cloudy and wet with rain as writers and well-wishers made their way there. It all started with a group tour around Nest One, a newly established innovative hub that focuses on arts and enterprises, geared at impacting the society through conversations and networking. The tour revealed the many delights of the place, ranging from a private viewing cinema, an art gallery, a bookstore, a garden, just to mention a few. The audience was thrilled to a musical sax performance by Sam – Sax afterwards.
The first performance for the day was a short story by Mr. Benjamin Ubiri, a writer and an On Air Personality, who was also the MC for the event. The audience enjoyed spoken word performances from Mahogany and Hybrid, Godwin Awunah and poetry presentations by Bonny Vera Jemimah and Debbie Iorliam.
Effanga, the author and celebrant as well as Ijeoma, his lovely wife were given a special place to sit facing the audience, after which Mr. Diego Okenyodo, the Country Director of Splendors of Dawn Poetry Foundation made his remarks. Celebrating the place of poetry in Nigeria and the far reaching effect it has as a media for addressing national issues, the escapee from Pharmacy into poetry draws attention to how but for organisations such as MacArthur Foundation and co, this special role of poetry would have been completely undermined. Joann, representing Ben200 Foundation, one of the underwriters of the event, spoke about the company’s goals of improving individuals and their commitment to literature.
Celebrant and wife to the right with two others at the occasion
Mr. Okenyodo still had one more task for him for the day. It was to read a citation on Mr Effanga, the celebrant. This was followed by a review of Effanga’s In the sun at sundown. That task fell on Mr. Nurdin Busari of AMAB, Effanga’s publisher. Busari spoke on the aesthetic of the book from the cover to the content. The book has six sections and a collection of fifty poems in total to mark the author’s fiftieth birthday, implying a poem for each year of his life so far, with sections such as heart affairs, politics, country and honour, odes, sports, cities, nature and religion. The greatness of the work, as far as he is concerned is in the skillful, yet playful manner the poet maneuvers words. A Goodwill message from Effanga’s wife was warmly expressed, followed by the book chat session moderated by the MC, Mr. Benjamin Ubiri.
Taking his turn eventually, Effanga spoke about his love for the arts, from literature to photography, with early influences from other writers as the culprit. Then the moderator asked him questions, ranging from the author’s message for aspiring writers and the intent of publishing the book. Effanga replied it is to awaken the consciousness of the people who are in the position to make decisions that will have consequences for others. He also read some poems from the new collection and answered more questions before three copies of the new book were auctioned, two of which were autographed by the author. All the three books were sold at a mouthwatering price at the end of the day.
Celebrant and his wife cut his birthday cake to the cheers of family, friends and fellow writers. Goodwill messages flowed and light refreshments followed before the hall started turning empty till the next birth day of the next writer.
