iROKOtv Exists for Nollywood to Survive, iROKOtv Boss

Abi Ishola, Co-host of Culture Shock: Nigerians in America, spoke to Jason Njoku, the founder and CEO of iROKOtv, at the company's office in New York City. Jason speaks on why he founded iROKOtv, discusses the $8 million investment he received to expand iROKOtv, explains how the money will benefit his company and the entire Nollywood industry, and also gives advice to young entrepreneurs in search of investment deals. And just how much is iROKOtv worth? Analysts say $30 million. Find out what Jason says.

Nollywood and Nigeria's Rebased Economy

The Time Of The Gross Domestic Producers By Okey Ndibe

That Nigeria has passed South Africa as Africa’s largest economy—when calculated by Gross Domestic Product—is almost old news.  The coverage of that feat afforded Nigeria’s image a rare shining moment in the foreign media. As Uri Friedman wrote in The Atlantic, “Something strange happened in Nigeria on Sunday: The economy nearly doubled, racking up hundreds of billions of dollars, ballooning to the size of the Polish and Belgian economies, and breezing by the South African economy to become Africa's largest. As days go, it was a good one.”

But many Nigerian pundits were far from impressed. Some were skeptical about the whole “re-basing” rhetoric. Some went as far as suggesting that Abuja fudged and rigged its way to first place. Others sought to restore perspective to the triumph by drawing attention to Nigeria’s perennial and persistent woes—among them a dismal infrastructure, scant electric power supply, run-away rates of unemployment, and miserable wages for the lowest brackets of workers.
 


In a piece provocatively titled “Okonjonomics Or When a Finance Minister Turns Money-Doubler,” Ogaga Ifowodo, a poet, professor, lawyer and political activist, cut to the heart of the matter. He wrote: “So if Nigerians went to bed in the night of Saturday, 5 April 2014, with N42.4 trillion naira in their collective pocket, and woke up the next day to their statistician-general’s revelation that they had grown richer by N37.8 trillion while they slept, wouldn’t they be fools to believe it if they remain as hungry and angry, homeless and jobless, as they were when they closed their eyes the night before? 

Writing in Igbo Language

Writing in the Igbo Language: Standards and Trends, by M. C. Onukawa

1.0      Preamble

Before the advent of Christian Missions in Igboland (through whose efforts the Igbo language was reduced to writing) Igbo, like several other Nigerian languages, had no written form. The Igbo language, literature, and culture were transmitted orally from parents to their children, adults to young ones, generation to generation. 

Children “were taught the history, geography, literature, civics, etc., of their people through stories, songs, myths, legends, and even contact with the environment” (Nwadike, 2008, p. 2). They were also taught different traditional trades and spheres of life in practical terms. 

The Igbo, however, had some esoteric sign writings through which they kept some accounts and records, and also preserved and transmitted some information (particularly secretly). There was also the NSIBIDI sign writing that was popular among the Igbo and their Ibibio neighbours.

1.1      Some Facts of Orthography

Orthography consists of the letters (i.e the alphabet) used in writing the sounds, as well as the rules that govern the spelling of words, phrases and sentences in a language.  A good orthography should therefore provide the following: the alphabet, the spelling rules, the punctuation marks and the rules governing their use. There are five recognized principles

that make a good orthography: accuracy, consistency, convenience, harmonization, and familiarity (Williamson, 1984).

The Dying Nigerian Languages

Language Education: Rescue Mission for Dying Mother Tongues 

By Louis Okoro Ugbagha

In Nigeria, language education is now a disappearing act from the school curriculum. Languages themselves are seen as lackluster subjects that can only be offered if authorities force them down the throat of very reluctant students. That way, they make up their subjects selection with any language of their choice and may or may not write them in any examination.


Nigeria has not strengthened its institutions enough to rescue our waning mother tongues. For instance, the Coordinator and Head of Institute, National Institute for Nigerian Languages (NINLAN), Dr Azubuike Ikediashi recently told newsmen that the institute would be unable to meet its goals in 2014 because it was not captured in the 2014 national budget.


Dr Ikediashi lamented the general neglect the Institute suffers as a result of the ignorance of Nigerians on the importance of indigenous languages and their roles in education, democracy, business and self image. Indeed, we do not seem to care whether our language dies or lives.


Meanwhile, in Nigeria today, there are the French, Korea, Chinese and a host of other Cultural centres, including the German Goethe Institute rendering one form of service or the other, but surreptitiously indoctrinating our citizens on their culture and languages. The reason is because these ‘big friends’ want to rule wherever they can through their language and by registering their culture in the people’s sub-conscious.


Ramsey Nouah On Nollywwood, Career & More

SaharaTV crew caught up with Nollywood actor and director, Ramsey Nouah on the set of a movie shoot in Lagos. In this interview, Ramsey speaks about a range of issues including piracy, conflicts in the actors' guild, politics, his niche as "lover boy" character, controversy about his father and his educational background.

Pope Francis Shares Top 10 Secret To Happiness

Pope Francis smiles as he celebrates Mass at the Royal Palace of Caserta in Italy on July 26.

In an interview published in part in the Argentine weekly "Viva" July 27, the pope listed his Top 10 tips for bringing greater joy to one's life:

1. "Live and let live." Everyone should be guided by this principle, he said, which has a similar expression in Rome with the saying, "Move forward and let others do the same."

2. "Be giving of yourself to others." People need to be open and generous toward others, he said, because "if you withdraw into yourself, you run the risk of becoming egocentric. And stagnant water becomes putrid."

3. "Proceed calmly" in life. The pope, who used to teach high school literature, used an image from an Argentine novel by Ricardo Guiraldes, in which the protagonist -- gaucho Don Segundo Sombra -- looks back on how he lived his life.

And Then, Finally, Death Spoke... By Segun Adeniyi

Segun Adeniyi

Heralded in by drummers, it was clear to all those who were already seated, important dignitaries in their own rights, that the new entrant was a class above them. That was because for the first time, the master of the house, the great Death himself, stood up to receive a visitor whom he allowed to sit on the throne beside his.

Apparently worried that he might have lost his preeminent place in the Kingdom of Death, Terrorism stood up to speak: “Your Majesty, High Chief Prophet Death, Grand Commander of the Earth and all things beneath, I salute you. As all my colleagues here are quite aware, since 2009 when I scaled up my operation in Nigeria, nobody has given you as much blood as I have done yet I have never received the kind of attention you gave this JJC. In recent days, I have brought in the blood of several Nigerians: From the twin-bomb attack in Kaduna to my operations in Kano and Adamawa, now I serve you blood minute by minute. While I am not aware of the area of expertise of this agent who just came in, one thing I am sure of: In the territory called Nigeria, nobody has served your interest as diligently as I have done in the last couple of weeks...”

“Point of Information my Lord, Your Excellency”, someone interjected.  It was Strike. With Death nodding his spectre, Strike knew he had the permission to speak. “My advice is to Terrorism. He should please stick to what he knows. Yes, he has killed many Nigerians in recent days; I concede that to him. I even understand that he is now gradually turning one section of the country against another such that at the end of the day the people themselves would begin to do his job for him on a massive scale. That is very clever. But if he is talking about the amount of blood made available to Your Majesty in the last two weeks, I deserve commendation. Now that I have medical doctors working in public hospitals on my side, I supply more blood to this kingdom. Terrorism may kill with guns, knives, cudgels etc but the fact that he helps editors to sell their newspapers doesn’t mean he has done more harm in Nigeria than me. Unlike him, I do my work quietly and I do not inflict needless pains; I simply allow Nigerians to die on the hospital beds and they do so in droves without their people paying much attention. My formula in Nigeria today is simple: From the hospital ward to the mortuary--a seamless journey!”

Don't Be A Follower, Don Jazzy

Don Jazzy

In recent interview with Yes Classics, multiple award-winning Nigerian music producer and CEO of Mavin Records, Don Jazzy advises young artistes to invest time in building their individual brands.

Yes Classics: Where do you think that most up and coming artistes get it wrong; where do you think they miss the point?

Don Jazzy: Nowadays, their [up and coming artistes'] eyes are too big (laughs). They have big eyes; they don't want to crawl before they start running. They want to jump straight from birth to university; they don't want to go to nursery school, primary school, secondary school. They just want to graduate instantly and it doesn't work like that. 

All fingers are not equal. Some people might get it right from the word go, but almost everybody they see they think that oh, they just came into the industry and made it. They don't know how much struggle they've put in behind the scene before they made it. They just assume, but it's not that easy. 

So, they should try as much as possible to study the entertainment industry a bit more before they just jump in and they should also perfect their craft. Don't try to copy people, don't be a follower, reinvent yourself--be somebody that is going to start a trend, don't just jump on another's trend. You'd just be the second best. 

What else? They believe the hype too quick. Just because you put your download link on Twitter and the people in your [housing] estate download your music and they hail you in the morning when you come outside doesn't mean the person in Surulere knows who you are. And you expect to go to the club and fight the bouncer because he doesn't recognize you. "You no know me? I'm the person that put up this download link yesterday" (general laughter).

I Find Joy in Igbo Language, Archbishop Obinna

Archbishop AJV Obinna

We haven’t quite fully recovered from the old indoctrination that everything from Europe or America is the best. Nigerians would have done better, but for the fact that we had people who were not properly educated leading us, and putting undue emphasis on everything Western. 

But when you study the Western culture as a real scholar, like some of us have done, you would discover that there is really nothing to get excited about. I have seen Europe and America, seen the white man, black man, yellow man, and all that. I have rediscovered myself. 

Indeed, when you have not rediscovered yourself, you will continue to look up to the Western world to define yourself. That’s why I define myself much more locally. I’ve found joy, learning and speaking the Igbo language. And that is why, in part, I started the Odenigbo Lecture Series.

The lecture series are conducted in my Igbo language; that every one in the village can understand. And I have discovered that it gives my people a great sense of joy, because I am helping them rediscover their identity, and to know that Igbo language is as good as English, French or any other, and never a mark of stupidity if you speak only Igbo. 

That there are very brilliant people who speak only Igbo because, after all, it was through the natural talents of farmers, fishermen and traders who never went to school, and what they cultivated, that their children were able to become trained as engineers and scientists. Indeed, many children of farmers, wine-tappers and wrestlers, have turned out to be excellent role models, because it is the practical knowledge of our people that laid the foundation for further intellectual or mental development of the later generation.

Smile and Give Thanks

RMD Receives "Dike Oha na Nollywood" Title

Veteran Nollywood actor and Delta State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD), will be honored with the “Dike Oha na Nollywood” chieftaincy title at the 2014 4th Nollywood Igbo Film Festival in Asaba, Delta State.

The founder of the festival, Nze Harris Chuma said RMD deserves the "people's warrior" title, having paid his dues as one of the celebrated actors in Nollywood.

According to Chuma, the three–day festival which holds from August 27th through 30th is designed to “help film makers reach the broadest possible audience, enable the international film community and general public to experience the power of cinema and promote Asaba city in Delta State as a major filmmaking centre.”

Adichie, Feminism, and "Flawless"

If anyone has the skills to make a speech about feminism go viral, it’s Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the Lagos-based writer whose ideas are as complex as her language is straightforward. Previously best known for her fiction, Adichie delivered a TEDx Talk in 2013 so nuanced and rousing, Beyoncé sampled it in her empowerment anthem “Flawless.” Titled “We Should All Be Feminists,” Adichie’s oration weaved together human stories from her youth in Nigeria with a complicated discourse about gender roles in the modern world and a literal textbook definition of “feminism,” which she read aloud about halfway through. Today, the speech comes out in eBook form, which you can purchase here. Reached by phone in Lagos, Adichie spoke to Vogue.com about the overwhelming success of her speech and what it means to talk politics with the whole world.

What was it like to have your ideas about feminism go so viral?

It felt strange and surprising. I had done one TED Talk and I felt that I had already said what I could, in fact, say, and I didn’t think I had anything else worth talking about. But then I also realized the one thing I cared about is gender, feminism. So I said, "Okay, I’ll do it." But I thought, This is not going to be popular, because it’s obvious that feminism for many people is a bad word, even if you believe in it, the word is off-putting. I thought seven people would care. I was surprised, but pleasantly so.

Is it always the goal of a writer to reach as many people as possible?

I don’t think in those terms. For this speech, it was an audience of mostly Africans, an audience I wanted to reach. I remember when I started off, just having a sense of push back, I knew that it was a subject that wasn’t popular, so when people stood up and clapped, that was success. My expectations had been low, so I was just surprised.

"When God Is Not Enough," by Rudolf Okonkwo

In the middle of Lagos- Benin expressway, before the Ore junction, sits a rusty disabled car with a partially burnt-out engine. It has been there for weeks, abandoned by the owner and by the state. There is no light where the car rests, yet thieves have managed to visit at night and extract anything of value in the car. Meanwhile, at their home in FESTAC, a patriarch and his family are preparing to travel to Onitsha. They have packed their luggage and taken them into their Honda Pilot jeep. They pray for God to grant them safe trip. The parents speak in tongues and the children sing choruses. Their neighbors and friends come out and wish them journey mercies. As they drive, they play gospel music and sing more songs and praises. Near the site where the rusty car rests, the patriarch of the family swings the car to avoid a pothole. By the time he regains control of the car, he is face to face with the disabled car. The last thing that comes out of his mouth before the car slams into the abandoned car is, God.

Over two hundred years ago, the French used to attribute everything to God. They revered their leaders as people chosen by God. They worshiped their clergies as men anointed by the Almighty, even as evidence mounted that these men and women of privilege were ruining the lives of the poor French citizens. In a sporadic uprising, the French society yanked off the yoke of ignorance and subservience and kicked out the so-called men and women handpicked by God.

Of Pentecostalism, Pastors, and Politics

Pastor Adeboye praying for President Jonathan

Keeping Pastor Enoch Adeboye’s Feet To The Fire

By Pius Adesanmi

Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the Daddy General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, has been in the headlines for all the right reasons lately. In August 2010, several newspapers quoted him as he declared war on election rigging and riggers.

"We shall resist election riggers in 2011", the famous preacher was reported to have fumed decisively. He ended 2010 on a grand note: Goodluck Jonathan went to beseech God at Daddy General Overseer’s feet, creating a famous photo-op in the process. Our internet commentariat went gaga for the wrong reasons, condemning Goodluck Jonathan for contacting God through the pastor’s intermission. Jonathan’s genuflection before God became the issue. Nobody paid attention to Pastor Adeboye’s iteration of his warning that election riggers would not be tolerated in 2011. He even fired a warning shot at Attahiru Jega and threatened to lead protests against fraudulent elections in 2011.

This is a heartening development. Pastor Enoch Adeboye is welcome to the Pastor Tunde Bakare corner of our collective struggle to take Nigeria back from the vultures in Abuja and the state capitals. What took him so long? Hopefully, his residency in this auspicious corner of the struggle shall not be temporary. For now, we shall pretend that we don’t mind the fact that Pastor Adeboye is spending too much time warning INEC and Jega instead of just kuku directly telling the scurrilous Presidents, state governors, ministers, senators, reps, chieftains, stakeholders, elder statesmen and such other ridiculous characters who regularly go to him for kneeling sessions and photo-ops that their irresponsibility and corruption will no longer be tolerated.

Culture: Key to Sustainable Development

The International Congress "Culture: Key to Sustainable Development" was held in Hangzhou (China) from 15 May to 17 May 2013. This was the first International Congress specifically focusing on the linkages between culture and sustainable development organized by UNESCO since the Stockholm Conference in 1998.  As such, the Congress provided the very first global forum to discuss the role of culture in sustainable development in view of the post-2015 development framework, with participation of the global community and the major international stakeholders.

While culture was absent from the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), integrating the cultural dimension into actions and goals in achieving sustainable development is an approach that is making its way on the international level. The Outcome document of MDG Summit, “Keeping the promise: united to achieve the Millennium Development Goals” (2010), emphasized the importance of culture for development and its contribution to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Furthermore, the trend toward integrating culture into UN development policies is particularly visible at the level of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF). Indeed, by January 2012, culture was included in 70% of UNDAF work plans worldwide. These figures are the result of an increasingly positive trend since the late 1990s, when only about 30% of UNDAFs included cultural entries.