WADONOR JUNE & JULY 2021 ed.
From the editor
The decision to have WADONOR for June & July instead of June, and July consecutively did not come easy. Notice we have used an ampersand ‘&’ instead of the regular conjunction ‘and’. Reason is that we had zeroed in on a fast-rising WADONIAN who has been making waves as a renowned journalist and in the literary world. We requested an interview from this worthy ambassador and it was granted. Because WADONIANS often strive under circumstances that would make other people baulk, we decided to promote our ambassador as the face of our June edition. But las-las this WADONIAN could not deliver, apparently bogged down by a very hectic schedule. Even though we were verily disappointed at the disappointment, we are moving on, have worked at making alternative arrangements. I guess it comes with the turf hey?
When royalty meets Royalty, that’s our cover for this month June & July. When royalty meets royalty, cultural sparks fly here and there. So it was at the Royal visit of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero to the Palace of the Oba of Benin in June. WADONOR witnessed the glitz and the glamour of that event and here brings you an analysis of that epochal event.
It was supposed to be a curious peek at the auditioning of Adesuwa the Play – at Ekewan road in Benin City but we were to discover an art Gallery tucked away and hidden like a monastery hidden in the Alps or the Himalayas – The Fontini Christi Gallery. It was here we met visual artists like Dr Njoku and Israel Wekpe who shared with us an interesting aspect of the role that WADONIANS have played in the art industry.
Cultural space around the world is excited at the return of cultural artefacts looted from the Bini kingdom in 1897 by a British expedition. The good thing in all of this is however blighted by the tug of war between the original owner of the artefacts – the Bini King – and its defacto – the Governor of Edo State. While the King wants the returned artefacts domiciled where they were originally stolen, the other wants to build a modern museum of West African Arts aka EMOWAA.
An Inaugural lecture held at the University of Benin, with Prof Tony Afejuku of the English department of that school. Held at the main auditorium, the Prof discussed the Autobiography of Nigeria, and made a case for the establishment of a centre for autobiographical studies in UNIBEN.
In the month of July, we were to find out that a Window on America, WOA, has been established in Benin City, Edo state. Like most American corners, the centre organises cultural activities and capacity building programmes that give participants a ‘window on America.
Enjoy the spread here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p9AtpbWoW-8_rFgXW8O2k11cynaE5qlY/view?usp=sharing
