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From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt
A Port Harcourt-based entrepreneur and entertainment promoter, Mr. My-ACE China, has identified comedy as panacea for Nigerians to overcome the current harsh economy.
China, who is popularly known as the Mayor of Housing, in an interview, said without humour-therapy, the rate of depression and suicide would be high because of the threatening hardship experienced by the citizens.
The real estate developer spoke on the sideline of the biggest comedy show in the Niger Delta region called the ‘Mayor of Pitakwa’.
He said: “The country is going through a new wave of stress. So, without humour-therapy, the rate of depression and suicide would be very high.
“Why Nigeria is surviving the wave of what it is going through is because of the heavy presence of humour. It has come in as a huge panacea for what people are going through.
“Over the years, because of the explosion of the humour industry, most Nigerians have come to fall back on humour to digest their problems. They simply turn their misery into jokes and find a way to live with it or overcome it. Songs and jokes abound in Nigeria on every single disaster or misery.
“Some comedians make cruel jokes on themselves so much that people see their own afflictions as jokes from nature. They no longer see these things as tragedy, but as jokes from nature which they must overcome.”
Mayor of Housing, who is the number one brand for two years running, having won the ‘Mayor of Pitakwa’ at D’MOMA Awards for 2022 and 2023, said he decided to identify himself with the event because it (Mayor of Pitakwa’) is the biggest comedy show in the Niger Delta region and the industry is overlooked.
He continued: “Part of what is shielding the populace from the wave of hardship in Nigeria is humour as captured by the comedy industry. That is why this industry should not be overlooked or downplayed. It is more important than any pill that can be given for depression, heartbreak, or hardship.”
He expressed concerns that many corporations in the region have not recognized the value of that industry as is done in Lagos and Abuja.
China stated: “I was once a comedian and I know how their industry is under-utilized and under-appreciated by many of the corporations in the region.
“We want to be the pioneers, not only to recognize that industry, but to bridge the gap of dichotomy between Lagos/Abuja and Port Harcourt zone.
“Another point is that this show captures Nigeria’s biggest demography of about 70 percent of the population. Nigeria right now is over 235 million people and 70 percent or 146 million of that is huge, is underappreciated and underutilized.”
According to him, a lot of people have called for an industrial and agricultural revolution in Nigeria as away out.
“But, the people that can bring this about are the youths that we neglect. The future billionaires are these same youths that we are underappreciating.
“So, if we can make an impression with and build bridges with them, we would be securing our future because by the time they are up there, they would not forget those who were there for them in the beginning.”
Ends.
