Daily Independent (Lagos)
9 October 2008
interview
Rivers State Government in collaboration with Rainbow Book Club recently organised Garden City Literary Festival entitled, Writers Without Border.
Professor Wole Soyinka was one of the guests at the four-day forum where students, writers, journalists and others gathered for literary feast. In this interactive session, Soyinka spoke on the Nigeria question, touched such issues as Niger Delta, Bakassi, the last national election, slow pace of governance in the country and why UNESCO must not cite its cultural institute in former President Olusegun Obasanjo's library among others. Our Correspondent, Yemi Adebisi, was at the session. Excerpts:
As a respectable global figure, how do you intend to use your writing and influence to calm the present situation in Niger Delta?
I was here to speak with the government official, militants and local leaders. We went to the creeks under the protection of some of the militants. We said we didn't want any policeman around us. They guaranteed maximum protection. We participated in all these in the open air in one of the creeks. They articulated what they wanted. We went into the history of contacts, negotiations between the Federal Government and the general committee of Delta movement. We compiled the report, which was presented referring to the earlier agreement. The secretaries of that team met with President Yar'Adua in Washington when he went for the Nigeria With The World Encounter and all that. We spoke with individuals. They came to Lagos to participate and to fashion out the new constitution for the country. This time again, Rainbow Book Club has invited me. I am not here to denigrate a principled movement. Even if there are errors, you have to recognise and begin to analyse the situation and see whether you agree with the basis of the struggle. We know that in this struggle, a colleague and friend of mine, Ken Saro Wiwa, was hung in the most brutal manner after a kangaroo trial with his companions. This goes beyond the mere encounter of the creeks between the militants on one side and the military on the other. It is not enough to come out and say 'lay down your arms.' That is a meaningless kind of statement. You have to go inside and persuade people why they should lay down their arms. Let them understand what other measures are being taken to make it possible to lay down their arms. You have got to be disciplined. You have got to recognise that like every movement in the world, there are machineries, sycophants, rapists etc; there is no movement that you would not have the criminal elements. Remember what happened in Yugoslavia. Arm struggle should always be a last resort. Once it starts, there is no control. You can never predict its direction. It's important for people to sit down habitably, discuss, debate and negotiate. The moment, in a serious manner, the Federal Government and the rest of Nigerians understand that the Niger Delta issue can be solved best in a holistic manner. It only happens that the taking of arms is in a certain section of the Delta or the nation. No, the single issue affects other parts of the nation. Only other parts of the nation have not resolved to go through militants but the same questions are being asked. To whom belongs primarily the wealth of the land? Should the nation be governed by a centralist system whereby all the resources go to one place? This nation hoards the various facts. The people must come together in full freedom and debate the terms of the association. It is not enough to say that don't fight. Yes, we have to say that. Drop your arms. Yes, we do. But, honestly, we must work on the environment whereby they understand why they have to drop the guns.
What do you think are the essential qualities in you that earned you a Nobel laureate?
We have nominated a number of people. Those grey, absolutely emotionless and scrabble panel in Sweden decided to give it to me. I didn't have the sort of white hair at the time. So, I don't understand their reasons. But I must confess. It is the greatest and fattest cheque I've seen all my life. All I know is that they give it not just for a work but for a collection of works. They are very serious and rigorous people. They spend about six months every year reading new text recommendations. They have a whole year of translators. So they don't concentrate mainly on European literatures, although naturally they read more of European literatures than others. I am very happy to accept it on behalf of those who deserve it at least for that year.
Publishers have frustrated a number of young writers in Nigeria. Can you use your experience to advise the upcoming writers about the unfortunate challenges from publishers who reject manuscripts?
Publishers are there, first of all, to do business. They want to make a living out of you and me. When they examine a text, the first question they ask is: Is it of good quality? Is it a solid work? But for many of them, they say, is there a good market for it? You may be the most brilliant person in the world. A combination of circumstances may disqualify you from being published. Some of them will bluntly tell you that 'my editor approves your writing but my marketing department says there is no demand for it.' That is why I say my answer has got to be negative. Then I advise you serious upcoming writers to go through Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA). They have set up machinery. They give award and prizes to good work.
With your rare sense of creativity, social criticism and passion for masses' freedom, one would expect you to belong to a political party to participate in the struggle for virile democracy. Why are you not involved?
I think you are wrong. I am the founder of a political party, Democratic Front for Peoples' Federation. (Professor Maurice) Iwu, you know his wisdom, refused to register my party despite the court ruling on a case filed by M.D. Yusuf, Gani Fawehinmi and others questioning the democratic basis on which his commission used to decide who should and who should not be registered. I wanted to create a platform for people who do not find it convenient belonging to any of those existing political parties. I know of so many parties whose offices existed in motor garages. We are not living in democracy. If we are living in democracy, will Iwu still be the head of INEC after the disgraceful conduct of the last election. The cynical manipulation of the election results brought out in the open court documented video films of what went on. Would somebody like Iwu not even have run out of this country? The same Iwu is still retained as the head of INEC. And you say you are running a democracy. No, it is not a democracy at all.
Why do people call you Kongi?
Kongi character is a character from Kongi's Harvest, one of my plays. Gauis Anoka was supposed to play this role but he moved to the other side of Biafra during the civil war and was held up by security men. The director of the film lost his patience to fill the character. Who then was the obvious to do this? Me now! I played Kongi and since that time, my name has become Kongi. Kongi is supposed to be a reflection of a bad person in Yoruba context but I never mind.
How can one choose a mentor in life?
The best mentorship is to consume as much literature as possible. Immerse yourself in a basic technique of writing. There are some schools which compel you to go through the process of imitating science. It's done in some schools of creative writing. This is supposed to be useful. It has to do with temperament. I don't actually recommend this, anyway. My advice is, read widely, take also opportunity to attend workshop like this one as organised by the Rainbow Book Club. Have a critic, not only by your mentor but by your own peers. There is no creative writing school in Nigeria and Ghana except in Iowa. People learn on the job in Nigeria.
Why can't we embark on making pidgin English a lingua franca in Nigeria?
I use Pidgin English in my writing, as some of you know. There are certain situations when Pidgin English is called for. People should understand that language is not just a vehicle of expression. It is also a repository of moral, ethics, history and philosophy of the people. There is nothing wrong at all in legalising Pidgin English. But linguistic experts have spent a lot of time analysing the process by which a language like Pidgin English can be coalesce into a proper form of communication. But the kind of language you are talking about will have to do with the richness of the original. That is the product of centuries. The process of twisting and mouldling language has a pleasure of its own. There has to be standardisation. There is however a political aspect. There is laziness in the use of Pidgin English. When I hear cook am well well, I'm always not comfortable. That's not pidgin. Some other people would say nak am. This can go in many directions. For you to say you want to legitimise it right away, you may create problems for yourself and create problems for comprehension. Communication is an agreed network of tones, syllables and phrases in relation to one another. I have mixed feeling on its being legitimised. We must be very careful in making it a means of communication.
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