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By Damiete Braide
It was an evening of music, dance, poetry performances last Friday at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, as book lovers, family members of shortlisted poets, friends and winners of Science and Literary Criticism converged on Muson Centre, Lagos, for the Grand Award Night ceremony of The Nigeria Prize for Literature 2022 with the theme, “Touching The Stars”.
The Amanyanabo of Bonny Kingdom, King Edward Asimini Dappa Pepple III, Perekule XI, Natural Ruler and Amanyanabo of Bonny and 22nd ruler of Bonny Kingdom, graced the occasion with members of his cultural group as their entertained guests with their paced dance steps to the delight.
Also, Symphony Orchestra Band and Choir thrilled guests with their performance while the Master of Ceremony dished out jokes that kept the audience reeling with laughter.
In his welcome remarks, NLNG’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Philip Mshelbila, said the company sponsored the prizes to ensure that excellence takes a prominent position in creativity and innovation in the country.
Speaking on the 2022 theme of the science prize, “Innovations in Sustainable Food Security”, Dr. Mshelbila stated that the prize and the winners were a wake-up call for the country and Nigerians to take responsibility for food sustenance.
“From the mangroves of the Niger Delta, through the rain forests, to the grassy plains and savannah terrains, the nation pitifully boasts of poverty, yet it is bountifully endowed with arable lands and agricultural treasures, including its aquatic wealth. This is a wake-up call! We must take responsibility for food sustenance, at the very least, and scale up to foreign exchange revenue drive from food/agriculture exports once our people are assured of their daily meals. What’s more, we must shun wastages, arising from poor handling or preservation of agricultural produce,” he said.
On literature, he stated that leading publishing experts indicate that poetry submissions had been unprecedented the world over. He stated further that the entries for the 2022 Nigeria Prize for Literature were the most ever in the history of the prize.
He said NLNG, as a world-class company, was actively seeking its place in the future, adding it is focused on gaining strength within the energy transition landscape.
“It really is the future of the world, and one for which NLNG should be rightly positioned, to bring Nigeria into that realm,” he said.
The winning book beat two other books on the shortlist of three, The Call of Water by Su’eddie Vershima Agema and Your Crib, My Qibla by Saddiq Dzukogi to clinch the prize. The book competed against 287 books submitted for the competition in 2022.
According to the judges, the winning book, Nomad, stood out as the most technically accomplished, rendering the topical subject of migration in a language laced with lyrical figurations. They stated that “the 67 poems in the collection were held together by a travel motif, marshalled in each poem with equal intensity, and linked to the African past, including the Middle Passage, and the African future.”
The panel of judges included Sule Emmanuel Egya, who was the Chairman of the panel and a professor of African Literature and Cultural Studies at Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State. Other judges were Toyin Adewale-Gabriel and Dike Chukwumerije. Adewale-Gabriel is a poet and fiction writer. Dike Chukwumerije is a spoken word and performance poet, and an award-winning author. Professor Susan Nalugwa Kiguli was the International Consultant for this year’s Prize. She is a Ugandan poet and an associate professor of literature at Makerere University.
Nigeria LNG Limited remains committed to responsible corporate citizenship, and The Nigeria Prize for Science, The Nigeria Prize for Literature and The Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism are some of the company’s numerous contributions towards building a better Nigeria.
Professor Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, Chairperson of the Advisory Board, announced Dr. Sakiru Adebayo as the 2022 winner of the Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism, which comes with One Million Naira (N1,000,000) prize money.
According to her, four winners of The Nigeria Prize for Science were also jointly awarded the prize money of $100,000. Muhydideen Oyekunle and Shehu Ado, as well as Sesan Peter Ayodeji and Emmanuel Olatunji Olatomilola, won the prize for their respective works entitled Gains in Grain Yield of Released Maize (Zea Mays L.) Cultivars under Drought and Well-Watered Conditions, and Development of Process Plant for Plantain Flour.
She added Nomad, authored by the poet, Romeo Oriogun, as the winner of the $100,000 prize for the 2022 cycle on Poetry.
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (GCFR), in his keynote address, stressed the critical roles science and literature play in national development. Chief Obasanjo said Nigeria could reach greatness through a strong will to change the prevailing narrative, adding “Nigeria is, as we all know, blessed beyond measure in talents, capabilities, and resources.”
“The world has always been fast spinning into areas of scientific breakthroughs and innovations that aim to maintain high standards of living, while sustainably preserving the earth for generations yet unborn. But now, more than ever, there is a sweeping tide of energy transition and climate change mandates, medical advancements and applications, food security interventions to combat hunger, as well as measures to sustain life on earth.
“Who is truly listening, and willing? Reaching and indeed, touching the stars which are light years away, is in retrospect, very much possible. In fact, there are several Nigerian citizens that occupy positions of merit, as global patriots. A national meteoritic rise can happen within the blink of an eye. Just like a space launch, a scientific breakthrough can shoot our nation to those seemingly unattainable heights where we can touch the stars.”
After he was announced as winner of the 2022 Nigeria Prize for Literature, Oriogun, in his congratulatory message, commended NLNG for organising the competition, and promised not to rest on his oars and he will continue to write more books.
“It feels so weird to be in this moment, “I don’t know what to say other than I am grateful to the judges for finding Nomad worthy of the 2022 Nigeria Prize for Literature. I’m grateful to @SaddiqDzukogi & @Sueddieagema for this journey & for many more.”
