Bukar Usman receives Enugu writers in Abuja

By Henry Akubuiro

On a cloudless afternoon sky, a day after the 2025 ANA International Convention ended in the FCT, Abuja, public intellectual, prolific author, and  president, Nigerian Folklore Society (NFS), Bukar Usman, received a delegation of writers from the Enugu State chapter of the Association of Nigerian Authors at his Maitama residence.

Led by the chapter’s chairperson, Mrs Adaobi Nwoye, the delegation included Justice George Nnamani, President, Enugu State Customary Court of Appeal; Emeka Ukwuaba, former Enugu State Commissioner for Public Utilities, Water Resources and Rural Electrification; and James Eze, former Chief Press Secretary to the Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, all published authors and respected members of the literary community in the Southeast and beyond.

In her introductory remarks, Mrs Nwoye said: “The people here are like the elders of ANA Enugu, and we came here as a mark of respect for what you stand for in Nigeria as a veteran public servant and an outstanding man of letters. Lest we forget, Usman was, last year, honoured by the Nigerian Academy of Letters.

Usman praised the humility of Justice Nnamani as a serving judge and a young man. He remarked that leadership positions had nothing to do with age but merit. He recalled that Babagana Kingigbe, Nigeria’s former  foreign affairs minister, was his schoolmate at King’s College, Lagos, but he later became his permanent secretary in the civil service, yet he served him quietly. “Until we parted ways, nobody knew what happened,” he noted.

Usman recalled that he served seven secretaries to the federal government during his days in the public service, the last being Gidado Idris.  He said truth was the armour of any public servant. He also recalled a close encounter with former Nigerian military head of state, General Murtala Muhammed, in 1976, when he, a junior officer, was summoned together with his permanent secretary to his office, where the general merely recommended a letter of advice for him over a matter concerning him, which was reported to him.

He cautioned public servants not to compromise in the discharge of their duties, because integrity would place them high on public reckoning years after retirement. He conducted the visitors around his home, bookstore and office.  He gifted each visitor a book written by him. They expressed appreciation for his kind gesture.

Earlier, James Eze, the author of the award-winning poetry collection, Dispossessed, presented a copy of his book to the elder statesman, who encouraged him to keep writing.

Justice Nnamani, who spoke on behalf of the visitors at the end of the visit, said the delegation had gained a lot from Usman’s wealth of experience, and thanked him for receiving them at home.