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The third Fidelity
Bank International Creative Writing Workshop themed ‘The Glory of
Nigerian Letters: Preserving the Tradition’ ended on Thursday, July 22
with a well attended closing ceremony at Ladi Kwali Hall, Sheraton
Hotel and Towers, Abuja.

Award winning
author and Creative Writing teacher at George Mason University,
Fairfax, Virginia, US, Helon Habila, was lead facilitator at the one
week training where 20 aspiring writers were taken through their paces.
Co-facilitators were: Zimbabwean writer, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Canadian
Madeleine Thien, and Jamaican, Colin Channer.

Our pride

Managing Director
of Fidelity Bank Plc, Reginald Ihejiahi, commended Habila and his team
in an address delivered on his behalf by Hassan Imam, regional manager
of the bank’s Abuja office. “Helon Habila is our pride; the pride of
this giant nation. A worthy Ambassador that deserves all the honour and
respect we can afford to accord him. We established this international
creative writing workshop three years ago and here we are today,
keeping our word, in line with our promise to Nigerians,” he said.

He added, “We
established this workshop as part of activities geared towards
promoting and preserving Nigeria’s literary tradition. It gives me joy
to inform you that graduates of this revolutionary effort have made
rapid progress in their writing careers in the domestic and
international arenas. Tolu Ogunlesi, Uche Umez, Eghosa Imasuen, Jumoke
Verissimo and Nze Sylva Ifedigbo are a few of the beneficiaries of the
workshop who have moved on to higher levels of accomplishment in their
chosen careers.” The first two editions of the workshops were
facilitated by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Invest in Literature

The literati and
other guests attended the event, chaired by Mohammed Abba Gana, a
former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory who came with his
wife. Former president, Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Abubakar
Gimba; Ken Ike Okere of the Abuja Literary Society; Emman Usman Shehu
of the Abuja Writers Forum; Eugenia Abu of the Nigerian Television
Authority (NTA); Jeremy Weate of Cassava Republic, Habila’s Nigerian
publishers; and Abdukadir Alkassim, who represented, Jerry Agada, the
ANA president were also present. The Ministers of Tourism, Culture and
National Orientation and his FCT counterpart also sent representatives.

Gimba opened the
reading session of the evening with a poem from his ‘The Honourable
Woman’. He later commended Fidelity Bank and urged corporate Nigeria to
also invest in literature. “During my tenure as President of ANA, we
tried all we could to get corporate Nigeria to invest in literature but
met a brick-wall. Today, I am happy with what Fidelity Bank Plc is
doing and would want to appeal to other corporate organisations to
follow Fidelity’s footsteps. Having said that, I do hope that this crop
of graduates will maintain the tradition and move on to greater heights
in the writing profession for that is the only way we can encourage
Fidelity Bank to be proud of their investment and for others to be
encouraged to invest in the literary arts industry that had hitherto
been neglected.”

Shehu, Habila and
some others also read from their works. The evening became livelier as
participants and guests spoke about books they have read and the impact
on them. This session affirmed that contrary to insinuations that
Nigerians don’t read, they do.

Mrs Abba Gana and
the Canadian Cultural Attaché to Nigeria, Christian Desroches later
presented certificates to the 20 graduates.

Like Gimba, Habila commended Fidelity Bank at the ceremony. He also
thanked the faculty for coming to Nigeria to help budding writers learn
the basic rudiments of creative writing. “I am particularly glad with
the quality and quantity of work samples received for this workshop.
Most importantly for the brilliance of the 20 eventually selected to
participate in the workshop. I think they have what it takes to make
Nigeria proud. They can help keep the tradition,” he said of the
participants.