Ola Rotimi's Kurunmi comes alive at National Theatre

By Yemi Olakitan

FOREMOST playwright and dramatist, late Prof. Ola Rotimi is set to come alive on stage as the National Arts Theater puts finishing touches for the production of one his finest plays, Kurunmi. Directed by ace theater director and veteran journalist, Ben Tomoloju, the play will be staged on December 22 and would run through January 1 at the National Arts Theatre Cinema Halls.

Tomoloju said the National Troupe is set to provide the best form of theatre entertainment to the Nigerian audience this Christmas season. He said the National Theater had been in the habit of running a series of theatre productions for many years as part of its statutory duties; staging numerous productions for entertainment and enlightenment purposes in order to maintain our national theater heritage.

As part of activities designed for this season, Tomoloju said, the National Theatre and the National Troupe picked the play to maintain and continue this laudable tradition.

Tomoloju is the Guest Director of the production. He has been in the vanguard of promoting arts and culture in Nigeria. He had staged numerous plays and toured various parts with several productions. He has walked in various capacities as an arts journalist and a representative of Nigeria in many international cultural engagements. Reputed to be one of the most experienced theater arts practitioners in the country, he has written and directed plays such as Jankariwo, Askari among others.

The Play Kurunmi is an historical tragedy written by Ola Rotimi.

Kurumi is an African Chief of the18th century Yoruba Kingdom. He was a war General who fought a war to maintain a dying tradition. He refused to allow time to change the tradition of his people in which a prince must die with his father, despite all entities from fellow chiefs. He went to war with the crowned prince and eventually died on the battlefield, losing the war and committing suicide. Kurumi is both a sojourn through our cultural heritage and a lesson in human relationships and peaceful co-existence. Perhaps the lesson in Kurunmi is that change is the only tradition that can stand forever.

The cast and character in the play include Kurunmi, the protagonist, played by renown actor Wale Macaulay, while Philip Okolo is played by Kurunmi's war Commander, Balogun Ogunkoroju, Dokubo plays Balogun Ibikunle of Ibadan, Alji Bello plays Timi of Ede, Albert Akaise plays Bashorun Ibikunle, Victor Oyadiji plays Bashorun Shomoye of Egba. The female actresses are Kehinde Adeyemo; Yemi Adeyemo, a veteran theatre artiste is performing as Kujeyo.

The Director of Production is Mr. Biodun Abey and the stage Manager, Mr. Bayo Bifarin, supported by other members of the technical crew of the National Theater and the National

Troupe.

According to Tomoloju, the National Theatre, who are the facilitators of the production, is sponsoring the project. They handle the costume, sets design, lightings and publicity. He said the National Theatre hopes to use such productions to harness the skills of professional in the Theater and also give young Theater enthusiasts an opportunity to groom their talents. Many interns are part of the cast and crew.

He added that the production has encouraged the process of internship with the use of undergraduates and fresh graduates of the arts as a result of large number of cast and crew required. He said the production could effectively accommodate a 100 cast. While the playwright Ola Rotimi accounted for 50 members of cast in the play, directorial interpretations have found out that some characters are not accounted for. The director said the audience should expect a lot of innovation in the casting, which includes multiple roles and a play on backdrops and sets. He hopes also to integrate the audience and the stage into a community so that what the audience will see will be like a village square performance.

Another look at the Nigerian Media Merit Awards

By Yemi Olakitan,

Published in the Guardian Newspapers of Monday, December 07, 2009   

ALTHOUGH the hospitality rendered by the Enugu State Government during the recently held Nigerian Media Merit Awards, NMMA should be commended. However, one cannot ignore the seemingly uncoordinated reception given to members of the media.

Firstly, it was not impressive to weave such an event around the personality of the State Governor, Sullivan Iheanacho Chime whose absence almost disrupted the event held at the Nike Lake Hotel, Enugu. Similarly, State Government officials should make adequate preparations for such events in the future and ensure that there is always a plan-B.

According to Mr.Yemi Akeju, Managing Director, Ideas Communications, it was important to look retrospectively at the annual event and restrategize. This, according to him, will lead to a better NMMA for all. It is therefore, very crucial to look at the event with a view to learning from it.

Governor Chime was scheduled to attend the NMMA awards and to "preside" over the opening ceremony.

As reported, pleas by the state officials that the deputy governor, Chief Sunday Onyebushi or some other officials be allowed to represent Governor Chime was reportedly turned down by the organizers, who insisted that only the governor could preside over the ceremony.

Scheduled to commence by 6pm, it was delayed till 1O.15pm as organizers waited endlessly for the Governor to arrive. The event later kicked off without the Governor: the opening ceremony was skipped, while some of the guests left; guests waited till about 2 a.m. and witnessed a rushed ceremony.

There were conflicting reports on the state of health of the Governor as many said he could not attend because of his health. There were also unconfirmed reports that he was poisoned at another event. Whatever the truth of the matter was, it was clear that the state government did not plan a flawless event.

Aside the absence of the governor, signs of improper planning started showing on Friday when journalists were taken round the state to have a first hand coverage of the State Government's various projects.

This exercise was cut short when it was discovered that officials at some of the places visited were not aware that such visitors were coming. At one of the venues, journalists were barred from taken pictures. The angry journalists eventually demanded to be taken back to their hotel rooms, as it was apparent that the state government did not inform most of the officials at the designated projects sites about the tour. They were able to visit only a handful of places as against the usual practice.

However, some other parts of the programme went on smoothly. Highlights were Chairman NMMA board of trustees who was also the Chairman of the Nigerian Press council, Alhaji Alade Odunewu, who spoke extensively at the event. He said the aim of the Nigerian Media Merit Awards is to promote excellence in the media and foster unity in the society at large.

Alhaji Odunewu added that despite odds, the organization had successfully sustained the award since its inception. He recalled that the first 10 editions were held in Lagos where there was a large concentration of the media, but that at the investiture of former President Olusegun Obasanjo as Grand Patron of NMMA, he (Obasanjo) suggested that the event should rotate to different states of the federation. Odunewu said Enugu was chosen because of its position as the former capital city of Eastern zone.

Winners of the 19th edition of the award were The Guardian Newspapers, which bagged the Newspaper of the Year as its editor, Debo Adesina, won the Editor of the Year, just as The Punch Newspaper won the prize in Editorial writing.

There were 47 awards in all, 35 in print, six in radio and six in television media. Some of the winners were Olushola Fabiyi who won the Abubakar Imam Prize for Features Writer of the Year; Lateef Ololade of Punch Newspapers, the Olu Aboderin Prize for Entertainment Reporter of the year; Lukman Ajisegiri of Tell Magazine News-Photographer of the year. The UBA prize for Money Market Reporting went to Salife Adejoko of National Life Newspapers; Louis Odion of National Life, the Columnist of the Year award.

The NMMA Chairman congratulated the Awardees and reminded them of one of their roles as the conscience of the nation and leaders and promoters of democracy. He stressed that the media should work to ensure that the election of 2010, move the country forward.

_Chairman of Award Nominating Panel and former Minister of Information, prince Tony Momoh said the panel received 695 entries for the 47 categories of awards for the print, radio and television. He said entries were assessed by 24 subcommittee members before the final recommendations to the board of trustees, and stressed that the board of trustees has the final say on who wins.

Momoh lamented the falling standard of journalism, which he attributed to a drift of experienced professionals. These journalists, he noted like to move to Public Relations, corporate affairs as soon as they make name.

This year, the media sector in Africa celebrates 50 years of television broadcasting in Nigeria while Channels Television took the Television Station of the Year award. Most of the award winners went home with computer laptops, cash prizes, and a book-- Democracy Watch-- written by former Minister of Information and Culture, Prince Tony Momoh.

The NMMA was inaugurated in December 1990 to celebrate and reward media excellence. The Enugu edition was the 19th edition. The NMMA have been hosted by numerous state Governments in the past. Some of them are Kwara state,Osun state, Bauchi state, Rivers state, Kano state and the federal capital territory.

MEET IHUOMA, THE NEW INSURANCE QUEEN

THIS POST WAS WRITTEN BY FURTUNE ON APRIL 10, 2009
POSTED UNDER: NEWS, culled from the Guardian Newspapers,Lagos,Nigeria

Meet Ihuoma, the new insurance queen
By Yemi Olakitan

THE recently celebrated 50th anniversary of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), which was held amidst pomp and pageantry, also witnessed the crowning of Miss Insurance 2009.

The beauty pageant, which was part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the institute, was a gathering of who is who in the Nigerian insurance sector.

The event, which was held at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja, was designed to identify the insurance sector with fashion, beauty and entertainment. Organisers of the event hoped that the pageant would make positive statements and remove much of the mystery behind insurance. It was also a way of celebrating the achievements of the insurance sector in Nigeria.

Contestants who participated in this year’s pageant were from different insurance companies in the country, with Miss Brenda Ihuoma Nwakama of Scib Nigeria Limited emerging the winner.

A native of Abia State, Ihuoma is a graduate of Public Administration from the Enugu State University of Technology. She is an Account Executive with Scib Nigeria Limited in Lagos.

Ihuoma, who joined Scib as a member of the National Youth Service Corps in Abuja, was later posted to Lagos as a staff of the company.

Speaking in an interview, Miss Nwakama said she was elated to have won the competition. She said she had always known that she would become a beauty queen one day, but did not suspect that it would be within the insurance industry. She expressed her deep appreciation to the staff and management of Scib for their moral and financial support, which enabled her win the competition.

Speaking further on her celebrated victory, Ihuoma said she will use her tenure as the new Miss Insurance for the year 2009 to pursue her pet projects, which include; creating awareness concerning the numerous insurance policies within the Nigerian insurance sector by partnering with members of the print and electronic media. She also wished to use her reign to promote corporate governance, also known as due process within the insurance sector.

She said she would endeavour to sensitise the insurance community on their social responsibility to the less privileged, the motherless and the poor in the society. Ihuoma plans to work together with all stakeholders within the sector. She hoped to work with the Insurers Association of Nigeria, the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria with support from her company Scib Nigeria & Company.

This queen is not new to the beauty pageant sector, having participated in various competitions in the past. She participated in the Prettiest Girl in Nigeria pageant organised by Phemy Concepts, an entertainment company in Lagos. She was also the winner of Miss Rotaract Nigeria 2005/2006, organised by the Rotary Club of Nigeria. Ihuoma was also Miss Rotaract, Enugu State University of Technology. She was also the district winner of the pageant before she went ahead to win it at the national level. Ihuoma was also, Miss Scib; a competition she won at her company’s new year party held in Lagos last December.

Ihuoma went home with the grand prize of a Kia Picanto car as the winner of the Miss Insurance beauty pageant. The car was donated by Goldlink Insurance Plc.

Speaking on the relevance of the pageant to the insurance sector and Scib Nigeria & Company Limited, Head, Human Resources Department, Miss Adeyemi Aderemi, said the pageant is a vehicle for youth development, growth and opportunity. She said it was important for the insurance sector to identify with other areas of human endeavour such as fashion, beauty, and entertainment because insurance is related to all aspects of human life.

She said Scib was proud to be the winner of this year’s competition, having emerged second runner up in last year’s competition.

Scib Nigeria & Company is an insurance broking and risk management firm based in Lagos. The company, which has been operating in the insurance sector for about 30 years, is a partner of Willis, an insurance firm based in the United Kingdom.