‘’Poetry can aid national transformation’’

Mr Mike Ekunno, the Head of media, Nigeria Film Regulatory Authority says poetry can be used to aid national transformation when mainstreamed into national consciousness.

Ekunno, a poet and reviewer of the book; “Promises on Sand’’, said this at the public presentation of the book in Abuja on Sunday. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the book is a collection of poems written by Amina Aboje.

“One of the ways this can be done is by making provisions for poets and spoken word artistes at state events, starting with our Presidential inaugurations.

“At the hallowed moment when the newly sworn- in president is busy signing the instruments of office, a soulful poetic rendition with eyes diverted to television screens, will surely pass the right message to our compatriots more than a dozen attitudinal campaign thereafter.

“We watched Maya Angelou performed “On the Pulse of Morning’’ at former American President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration in 1993; we all went Wow.

“The living tropes of a people should not be kept away like Christmas clothes to be put on occasionally; they should be integrated into the daily lives of the nation and people,’’ Ekunno said.

He emphasised that state functions should embed the word artistry of poets and spoken word artistes to point us to the stars and renew citizen’s hope in the possibility of Nigeria.

According to Ekunno, who formally sites for Sunday Guardian says, poetry helps music through well-written lyrics by professional songwriters as poetry is to good music what salt is to good cooking.

“It won’t be preposterous at the level of development of the Nigerian Music industry to ask that division of labour and specialisation be cultivated.

“People should be able to earn their living as songwriters, instrumentalist/season men, producers, band managers, artists and repertory managers and marketers.

“I therefore call for a creative handshake between the genres of singing and poetry in Nigeria; the wonderful results we see from advanced countries convince us that such collaboration can only bode well for our country.

“Good song writing should be able to help our recording artists clean-up their act and motivate a generation of Nigerians lost in national confusion,” Ekunno said.

While reviewing the book, the writer said that the book was an 87-page poetry compilation made up of four sessions in view of the consanguinity of the subject matter.

“These sessions are; `The Glow’, `Of Loss and Hope’, `Time, Transient and Nature’, and `Pangs of Nationhood’.

He explained that in “The Glow”, the theme of sensuality with a romantic hue could be discerned. Ekunno who authored “Intelligence: Mingless or Single Minded?” also said “Of Lost and Hope” spoke on the musings on life and living.

“In `Time, Transient and Nature” we see the experimentation with haiku’s and vignettes concerned with the three areas of the subtitle. “Panges of Nationhood” does what it says with poems which bemoan our lost as a nation,” he said.

Ekunno stressed the need for other poets and writers of fiction to come forward with futuristic scenarios of what life would be in a post-injustice, post-corruption Nigeria.