Literature

Nigerian literary scene is vibrant ? Agada

Dr. Jerry Agada, the immediate past president of Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA),is not just a renowned writer but a veteran administrator. He was Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, 1999 to 2000; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, 2000 to 2001; Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, 2001 to 2006; Permanent Secretary (Political), Cabinet Office, February to September 2006, in Benue State. At the federal level, he was Minister of State for Education from 2007 to 2008. In terms of writing, the civil servant cum politician, who studied in England, Scotland and the United States, has produced quite a number of works in short stories, poetry, novels and travelogue. And one of his novels, The Successors, has been recommended for candidates for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME. In this interview with SUMAILA UMAISHA, he speaks about his literary achievements, the declining reading culture in Nigeria and other related issues.

As a former president of Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), what is your assessment of the current Nigerian literary scene?

The Nigerian literary scene is vibrant. Personally, I?m impressed with the way things are happening in the literary circle. Nigeria is a very big country, so no matter the effort you put in there will always be room for improvement. But in terms of reading and writing, a lot of things are taking place. When people talk about reading they usual start from how the reading culture is declining. People will not mention the efforts that are being made to reverse the trend. The fact is that there is much more awareness now than it used to be in terms of reviving the reading culture.

And in terms of writing, ANA plus other writing associations in the country are doing very well. There are lots of writings. But what I will say is that we should not get carried away with the idea of churning out plenty book and thereby compromise quality. There should be proper editing so that once a book is out it will be well accepted.

As former Education minister, you tried to revive the reading culture. Would you say the effort was sustained after you left office?

Before I assumed the office as minister there wasn?t much talk about the need for people to read. I know there was a research conducted by the Education ministry around 2006. And the finding was that the reading culture was low thereby affecting students? learning ability and their performance in exams. It is when I came to the ministry that I flagged off the national action committee on Read Campaign. In fact, the day we flagged it off we invited people from every sector of the economy to come and read. I remember, our former head of state, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, was the guest reader. The then president, Yar?Adua, was represented by the FCT minister, and he also read a book. Many personalities read at the occasion to show that reading does not just serve as a means to pass exams, but for self-actualisation. That is the situation in developed countries, where you find people reading while travelling in buses or trains, instead of using the time to gossip.

To answer your question on whether the effort is sustained; yes, I think it is sustained. Just recently I heard on the radio the National Library of Nigeria talking about reading culture. Apart from the efforts of the ministry of Education there are other reading organizations working towards reviving the reading culture. The enlightenment has even become much more than it used to be.

In those days people didn?t have to be encouraged to read, why is it different today; why are people being persuaded before they read?

There are many factors responsible for that. Just like other aspects of our life, the culture has disappeared. The value system has changed. Look at agriculture, for instance. In those days it was the mainstay of our economy. Everybody was happy to be called a farmer. It was a thing of pride to have a large farm. But suddenly people started seeing farmers as poor, insignificant people. The value system has generally declined. It is the same thing that is happening to the reading culture. In schools those days children were encouraged to read. Apart from the regular class readers there were libraries where the child could choose a book and read on his own. But today most schools don?t care about this aspect of the child?s development.

Your writings have gone places. One of your novels, The Successors, has been recommended for Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, alongside Chukwuemeka Ike?s The Potter?s Wheel. How did that come about?

It did not come overnight. It is a result of continuous determination to achieve my passion. Writing is all about passion; it is the passion that drives one. Nothing interests me more than seeing my new book in print. Therefore, with such passion and the resultant efforts, it is only natural that the desired goal will eventually be achieved. One day I was going through amazon.com on the internet and I saw one of my books listed on the site. It made me very happy.

I started writing as a school principal; that is, long before I became Permanent Secretary in the Benue State Ministry of Education. And my books were being read in schools within the state. They were usually recommended after thorough screening to ensure only qualitative works were chosen for schools. So the criterion was not based on the fact that I was a principal or permanent secretary. Even this one, The Successors, was thoroughly screened along with others before it was eventually recommended. I first submitted it to the Ministry of Education through the Education Resource Centre, ERC, for assessment. And it was found suitable for the Use of English aspect of UTME exams.

I would simply say this recommendation is a culmination of my past efforts as a writer. This book earlier made the shortlist of an international literary competition by Readers Digest. I didn?t win but I received a commendation from them. It also made the shortlist of 2008 edition of NLNG literary competition. For a book to make the shortlist of these organizations, it means such book has something in it. I?m narrating this story because those who don?t know may think the book was recommended because I was a former minister of Education. But how many former ministers of Education have their works there? Many of them write, but their works are not there. Not that I?m better than they are, but they may not even have the time. Not every writer has the time to devote himself to the art of writing. But I am completely dedicated to writing. And I?m so happy. Many people who saw the book in bookshops as part of UTME syllabus have sent texts congratulating me. This is the kind of thing I cherish.

What is your advice to the writers who would also love to have their works adopted by the examination body?

The first advice is that they should not write just to win prizes. They should just put their minds on the work and craft it to the best of their ability and the quality will naturally come out. As a writer if at a point your book does not win an award, or does not get recommended for schools, don?t be discouraged. Keep trying until it comes on board. If you write interesting stories and you are patient enough to edit them well, then you will eventually make it.

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