By James Eze
When governor Willie Obiano allowed a poet to read a poem to the full session of his cabinet, what did you think was afoot?
Well…Lagos, Abuja move over. Anambra is finally here. The cultural orbit is in motion and Anambra is the new capital.
Now take this…Anambra boys have announced their intention to move things back home. And we may be no longer at ease in the old dispensation…
Indeed after decades of living like a luxuriant plant whose roots are in the skies, Anambra’s success stories are finally finding their way home. Governor Willie Obiano has created a harmonious social environment where any gift can find expression and now, Anambra-born entrepreneurs; very much like the proverbial Aku (winged termite) that flies and flaps around for a while only to surrender to gravity and the immense patience of the waiting toad on the ground, are returning to light up a few candles at home.
If there were any doubts about the shift in Nigeria’s cultural landscape, last Christmas erased them completely. Anambra swung into a new social orbit in a manner that took everyone by surprise. In less than a week, the state had hosted massive music festivals and major carnivals in Awka, Uli, Nnewi, Oba and Ojoto. Each show drew incredible crowds that no one knew could come from the state and each show paraded the best talents in Nigeria’s entertainment industry.
For instance, Uli in Ihiala Local Government Area suddenly transformed into an entertainment wonderland of sorts on December 30, 2019 when the Okonkwo brothers, Kcee and E-Money arrived with a lorry-load of Nigeria’s A-List musicians and comedians.
It didn’t seem believable but the Okonkwos’ Uli Music Festival paraded acts like Phyno, Runtown, Bracket, Duncan Mighty, OritseFemi, Zoro, Faze, Ruffcoin Nwa Aba, Slow Diggy Nwanne (Slow Dogg), Mr 2Kay, Nigga Raw and many others as well as comedians like AY, I Go Dye, Dauda, Acapella and Funnybone. The mammoth crowd that turned up at the Uli Central School field venue of the show was unbelievable for a show held in a small town.
Davido and Naira Marley’s concert in Nnewi was a landmark event. The show was tagged ‘Anambra Music Festival’ and it lived up to its billing. Put together by Chizzy Entertainment, the show had the massive Ifeanyi Ubah Stadium Nnewi packed to capacity. It also attracted so many important businessmen and women, leading industrialists, politicians and community leaders that seemed unlikely guests of such a youthful celebration. However, these people felt safe enough to come out with their families and enjoy the beginning of another year at the concert.
In much the same way, the Oba Carnival was a huge musical festival that brought Davido back to Anambra in less than one week after performing at Nnewi. The Chairman of Cubana Group, Obiora Iyiegbu whose lifestyle company has changed the face of the Nigerian social scene finally decided to bring his reputation home to Oba, his home town. So, Iyiegbu brought Tuface, Davido, DJ Jimmy Jatt, Flavour, Slow Dog, DJ Neptune, Nigga Raw, KCee and many others to the Merchant of Light Secondary School field in Oba to turn on the heat on the landscape. It was another huge success.
The Ojoto Festival that came even earlier than the Oba Carnival also packed a cast of Nigeria’s finest entertainers. Ojoto is just a shout away from Oba, by the way. Phyno, Olamide, Humblesmith, Illbliss, Waje, Zoro, Ruffcoin nwa Aba, Fireboy, Perruzi and Skibi were all billed to grace the event along with notable comedians like Funnybone, Whalemouth, Kennyblack and Ushbebe among others. The organizer of Ojoto Fest, Dr Kennedy Okonkwo of Nedcom Oaks is full of ambition for the festival. He assured that Ojoto Festival was not a flash in the pan. And that it had come to stay.
But before all these series of concerts and festivals kicked in, Stanel World Awka had in a partnership with Access Bank and the Government of Anambra State organized a Master Class titled “Become More” for entrepreneurs in Awka The event was wrapped up in the evening with a musical concert that featured leading acts like 2Face, Phyno, Slow Dogg, Okey Bakassi and others.
It has to be said though that there is more to the New Anambra than the music festivals and carnivals. The truth is, as the cradle of Igbo origin, Anambra has a rich tapestry of culture and all the high ceremonies that mark Ndigbo out as an ancient ethnic group with centuries old civilization.
The Odinani Museum in Nri, the Igboukwu Museum and the new Enugwu-Ukwu Museum all point to a culture that has traveled through eons of years. The Ofala festivals marked by the various traditional institutions across the state are an extravagant display of a highly advanced culture.
And just the other day, the new Igwe of Aguleri, Igwe Mike Idigo, set fresh standards in his first Ovala with a well-attended public lecture. Titled ‘Okanga Aguleri,’ the lecture resounded across the cultural landscape to inject a new intellectual ferment to traditional festivals in Igboland.
In much the same way, the Ofala festival of the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe remains an important item on Nigeria’s cultural calendar. This applies to many other Ofalas across Anambra State which take place at different times of the year. All these give Anambra the admirable texture of an emerging cultural capital.
There are also other festivals across the state that contribute to this impressive cultural mosaic. The Igu Aro in Nri and Enugwu-Ukwu, the Nwafor Festival in Ogidi and Ogbunike, the Ede Aro Abagana, the Imo Awka festival of Awka, the Eziokpalaigwe festival of Abagana, the Afia Olu festival of Nnewi, the Uzoiyi festival of Umuoji, the Obiora Obosi, the Iwaji festival of Igboukwu and several other festivals across the state keep the social dairy busy all year round.
Lately, the cultural calendar of Anambra State has also taken a tilt towards literary creativity. The Return to Idoto, A Flutter in the Woods, the Chinua Achebe Festival and more recently the Purple Hibiscus Creative Writing Workshop are all interesting new additions to the widening cultural circle of Anambra State.
There are also important memorials like the one marked by Hon Uche Okafor, Speaker of the Anambra State House of Assembly, that drew dignitaries across the state to Ifite-Ogwari, his home town and empowerment programmes like Senator Victor Umeh’s Empowerment Programme for Widows and Indigent Youths which have struck a remarkable social resonance among the people.
The hard fact though is that all these are happening now because Anambra has become Nigeria’s safest state, there are access roads crisscrossing every part of the state and ndi Anambra have finally accepted the Aku luo uno call and that east or west, home is the best.
In the end, we are brought face to face with the inspiring story of a people once pressed to earth by violent crime and abysmal leadership. But in just five years of Governor Obiano’s inspirational leadership, Anambra is on the rise!