For the politically interested blog readers that happen to be in London, not sure I’ll make it but if yes I let you know how it went:
Oil, Power & Politics in Nigeria
Wednesday 28th October, 6pm
Committee Room 9, Houses of Parliament, London SW1A 0AA
Speakers
Michael Peel (Author, A Swamp Full of Dollars, Former FT correspondent)
Dr Raufu Mustapha (University of Oxford)
Patrick Smith (tbc) (Africa Confidential)
Chair
John Robertson MP (Nigeria All Party Parliamentary Group)
Nigeria is a country where petroleum and polio have both boomed, where small villages challenge giant oil companies, and scooter drivers run their own mini-state. It is a success story waiting to happen, but most ordinary Nigerians remain poor while a corrupt elite has looted its riches and controlled its politics. Next year Nigeria will have been independent for 50 years. Many Nigerians may not feel there has been much to celebrate, and the common criticism of the current administration will likely remain – too little has been done. Our panel of experts will analyse whether the present reforms of the banking sector and the proposed reform of the oil sector are radical enough to set Nigeria on a different path, economically and politically.
When I flicked through the papers this morning – online, if you must know – I came across an article in the Daily Trust that extolls the virtues Usman dan Fodio and his generation of northern Nigerian political leaders. It sets them up as good examples of leadership and argues that current President of Nigeria Muhammad Buhari should take inspiration from them to solve the current crisis of leadership in his government. Now, I don't want to get into political arguments here. I only mention this article – here, in a space that I said I'd use to organise my thoughts for my art historical writing – because it was illustrated by a photograph of a smiling elderly man. The caption underneath the photograph identifies the man in the picture as 'Shaikh Usumanu Danfodio'. Now, the founder of the Sokoto caliphate may not have been the only Sheikh named Usman (or Osman or Usumanu) in the family. However, the article makes it pretty clear that it is him that the author ...
Once again I have been procrastinating for few minutes to get over a temporary writing blog and what did I find? Look, the iconography of the Sheikh Ahmad Tijani poster I have collected in Kano has been more influential in West Africa than I originally would have thought. Granted, this is again an image from Senegal, a country with a strong tradition of Sufi Islam and adaptation of imported religious prints into new media, behind glass painting, followed by the subsequent extension of this artistic practice to include a variety of other religious and profane subject matter … anyway, its related to my research so I’m excited about it! So here you go, this is what I found: I guess, the choice of this image speaks of its ubiquity and iconic power in Senegal at least – iconic, here, in the sense of the image’s potential to symbolise not only the depicted person but also the ideas and philosophy associated with his name. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find out when the boo...
The other day I found another poem that fits the subject of my current project, i.e. lorry decorations. To pay respect where it is due, I acknowledge my debt to Christiane Fioupou (1994) who mentioned this poem in her study of representations of the road in Wole Soyinka's works. I may have found it eventually – I am currently still flicking through issues of the weekly West Africa in which it has been published. However, it would have taken me a long time.
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