ANA greets Members, Nigerians on the New Year 2019

ANA GREETS MEMBERS, NIGERIANS ON THE NEW YEAR 2019

The Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), through her national President, Mallam Denja Abdulahi has conveyed New Year greetings to Nigerians and members of the Association.

In her New Year message, ANA wished her members and Nigerians a bright and happy new year and prayed that 2019 would usher peace and a more united Nigeria which would promote progress, prosperity and wellbeing of all Nigerians before and after the 2019 general elections.

This was contained in a press release issued and signed by ANA President, Mallam Denja Abdulahi this morning and made available to newsmen in Abuja.

According to the release, “On the happy occasion of the New Year, on behalf of the Association of Nigerian Authors, I extend my heartiest greetings and best wishes to all Nigerians. May the dawn of New Year rekindle in us the spirit of unity and compassion and promote peace and harmony. May every day of the New Year be filled with joy and happiness, I wish the New Year that has set in acts as an harbinger of a new era of peace and prosperity in Nigeria,” 

On the activities of the state chapters of the Association,Mallam Denja Abdulahi advised ANA states Chairmen across the country to intensify more efforts on their monthly readings and other literary activities aim at eradicating illiteracy and promoting literacy and the reading culture in their respective states.

Mallam Denja Abdulahi assured members of the public that ANA 2019 literary activities will be all-inclusive and ground breaking. He enjoined members to expect more innovations in some of her annual activities which include: the ANA/Yusuf Ali Literary Awareness Campaign, Meeting of the National Executive Council with Chairmen and secretaries of States’ Chapters, Authors’ Groove, the inauguration of completed structures in The Mamman Vatsa Writers'Village, Abuja, the 2nd criticism conference and creative workshop in partnership with Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo to mention but a few.

ANA President finally urged all her members to keep faith with the Association and enjoined them to be resolute in supporting credibility in the change of leadership to occur at the national level of the Association come October 2019 at its 38th International Convention in a venue yet to be decided. He also advised members who have gotten their permanent voters cards (PVC) to do their civic and democratic duty by voting for their chosen candidates at the Nigerian General Elections come February and March 2019 in atmosphere devoid of hate speeches and rancour. ANA members are further enjoined to conduct themselves in a peaceful, thoughtful and responsible manner during the elections and put the survival and progress of the nation as of paramount importance at all times in the course of the New Year.

ANA felicitates with Christians at Christmas

ANA FELICITATES WITH CHRISTIANS AT CHRISTMAS

 
The Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) has felicitated with Christians in the country on the occasion of the Christmas celebration. Denja Abdulahi, the current National President of the Association urged Christians to use the Christmas period to rededicate themselves afresh to the service of the Almighty God.

This was contained in a press release issued and signed by the ANA President, Mallam Denja Abdulahi yesterday in Abuja and made available to the newsmen.

In his Christmas goodwill message, Mallam Denja Abdulahi said: “Christmas is more than merry-making, Nigerians should reflect deeper on the humility that characterized the birth of Jesus Christ and the fulfilment of God’s promises concerning His birth.

“As the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ also symbolises love and fulfilment of God’s promises, it has become more than ever necessary that, not minding what anyone must have done to us, we must not stop being kind and dedicated to God.”

ANA President further called on Nigerians to remain steadfast in their prayers for peace and unity in the country as the 2019 general elections draw closer. He stated that the country could only conduct free and free elections in an ambiance of peace and unity.

He further implored Nigerians to reflect the virtues of love, peace and tolerance as exemplified by Jesus Christ in order to have a credible, peaceful, free and fair elections come February 2019.

“The Christmas period is celebrated as a season of peace, goodwill and hope across national boundaries. “It offers us a unique opportunity to express and share Christ’s message of love, peace, unity and reconciliation to all men and women.

Nigerians are finally urged to use the festive period for increased spiritual devotion towards living in peace and harmony with adherents of other faiths.

By so doing, Christians will be emulating Jesus Christ in words, deeds and imbibing the core lessons of love, tolerance, sacrifice and generosity which Christ stood for.

For Ikeogu, For Poetry: Call for Submissions

   FOR IKEOGU, FOR POETRY: CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

 

Ikeogu Oke, poet, literary troubadour and winner of the 2017 NLNG Literature Prize Prize (Poetry) was notably vibrant in life and vocation as a writer.  A jolly good fellow, humanist and unapologetic defender of African culture, Mr. Oke brought a unique finesse to the art of writing, especially in poetry, lacing his lines with music and suiting the rhythm and tempo of words to its operatic foundations. In doing this, he created a new sort of poetry placed on the wings of performance yet retaining the candour and piquancy of this elevated of all arts. His was a concatenation of poesy in union with performance as he also created words with the enigma of art that enthrals and thrills. The author of The Heresiad, that won him the NLNG Prize and many other works spread across anthologies and other publication outlets, Ikeogu Oke, was a visible signpost of an emergent trope of writing though traditional yet uniquely different and effusive in its acceleration and positioning a new credo of creativity. 

The gusto with which he unassumingly projected ‘a yet-unexplored idea of poetry as an art form that transcends verse and goes on to embrace song, music and drama, resulting in what may be called operatic poetry’ (The Heresiad, 2017:7) did not leave the discerning surprised about his determination to change the game of verse and the verse of game. In a deliberate cantata of spoken words, mixed with the rubrics of traditional verse, our literary universe received with excitement the birth of a canon that was beginning to tune us to a Handelian spectacle and compositional trope when suddenly the music ceased and verse ran out of its metre. A sad end to a performance that was just about taking off, yet poetry does not die. Poetry as all arts lives with the creator also living eternally in intellectual memory. 

Sad as it is to be notified of the recent demise of poet Ikeogu Oke, the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), in a bid to immortalise this active poet of our time and a living totem to the power of hard work in the face of all challenges, hereby invites submission of tribute poems in honour of Ikeogu Oke. The Editors of this forthcoming volume are looking for 51 poems (in tandem with his age at the time of death) for inclusion in a book that will be released in the first quarter of 2019.  It will be essentially a collection of poems strictly on him and his art or related to poetry and mortality or immortality. The poems should be structurally concise, thematically-relevant and strategically poetic. Only 51 poems will be selected in a qualitative first come first serve tradition and so interested contributors should immediately send in one or not more than two poems of which one may be selected on or before the deadline of 31 December, 2018. All submissions with not more than one hundred word biodata should be forwarded to nwspublishers2016@gmail.com.

Denja Abdullahi                                                                 Ofonime Inyang, PhD

President                                                                              General Secretary

ANA Mourns Ikeogu Oke, winner of 2017 NLNG Literature Prize

ANA Mourns Ikeogu Oke, winner of 2017 NLNG Literature Prize

Mallam Denja Abdullahi, ANA National President has condoled with the Late Ikeogu’s family on the death of one of their sons and one of the staunch members of the Association,Ikeogu Oke, winner of 2017 NLNG Literature Prize.

ANA’s condolence message was issued and made available to newsmen in Abuja yesterday.

According to the Message, ANA National President, Mallam Denja Abdulahi affirmed that the Late Ikeogu Oke, who was well respected for his poetic sagacity and resourcefulness, would be long remembered for his literary contributions to the country. 

ANA also paid tribute to his enduring commitment and legacy to the development of indigenous poetry and his active participation in several notable activities of the Association in recent times.

ANA finally prayed that almighty God would comfort his family, friends and literary associates in this period of grief and grant the soul of the departed eternal rest.

Ikeogu Oke was a Nigerian author, journalist and award-winning poet. In 2017, he won the Nigeria Prize for Literature for his first collection of poetry The Heresiad. 

Ikeogu worked as a journalist in Nigeria, writing columns for a number of national dailies. 

In 2017, Oke's debut collection of poetry The Heresiad (KraftGriots, 2017) was nominated for the Nigeria Prize for Literature, along with work by Ogaga Ifowodo and Tanure Ojaide. It won. In his acceptance speech, he describes poetry as "healthy narcotics." " I am happy to be addicted to it as shown by my refusal to be swayed by such concerns. I have invoked the poem here hopefully to arouse the contemplation of how one’s resolve to pursue one’s dreams in spite of such concerns is the best decision that can lead to a fulfilled life," he wrote in his acceptance speech.

The book has been described as "a work that speaks to an intense commitment to innovation, tenacity, joyful experimentation and social commentary in a way that provokes delight and engagement." The Prize judges described it as "a bold and wonderful experiment whose great strength also could have been its great weakness."

Oke died on November 24, 2018 at the National Hospital in Abuja where he had been receiving treatment for an ailment that has kept him out of circulation for a while.

ANA President Congratulates Muslims On Eid-E-Maolud Day Celebration

ANA PRESIDENT CONGRATULATES MUSLIMS ON EID-E-MAOLUD DAY CELEBRATION

Mallam Denja Abdulahi, national President of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) has congratulated Muslims across the country on the 2018 celebration of Eid-e-Maolud day.

This was contained in a press statement released in Abuja today.

According to him “The birth of Prophet Mohammed and his exemplary life of compassion, mercy and tolerance is worthy of celebration and remembrance as observed by Muslim faithfuls today.”.

“The celebration is not about merry making but a special day of worship. It is meant to serve as a reminder for Muslims to follow the exemplary life of Prophet Mohammed and join in the fight to eradicate and prevent violent extremism of all kinds in our society”.

ANA President finally urged Muslims that the best way to celebrate the birth of Mohammed is to give alms and listen to teachings that will boost their faith and to emulate Prophet Mohammed who is an epitome of every good thing and the best of conducts"