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Nigeria’s TJ Benson, Others Win LOATAD’s AU20 Writing Project
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
The African Union (AU), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Library Of Africa and The African Diaspora (LOATAD), hosted a residency programme under the AU20 project for established writers from across Africa to produce a piece of work that celebrates the unity and potential of the African continent.
This year, the African Union celebrates its 20th anniversary since its establishment at the Durban Summit in July 2002. Dubbed AU20, the celebrations have taken place under the theme Our Africa, Our Future and focus on the AU’s initiatives, successes, impact, challenges and the way forward.
The writers’ residency took the form of a hybrid programme, with two online meetings in October/November and a two-week physical residency at LOATAD in Accra, Ghana, from November 14 – 28.
Catering to the theme, Our Africa, Our Future, five writers from the continent were tasked to interpret the theme in an expansive way across a selected genre, including fiction, narrative non-fiction and poetry. The piece is pegged between 5,000 and 7,000 words (or five poems for poets) on the theme for the e-book. The final work will be published in an e-book anthology to be released in early 2023.
The AU20 project aims to elevate the profile of the AU in the minds of Africans, particularly the creative community, and better connect the AU to African citizens. Powered by Africa No Filter, the writers’ residency is a unique contribution towards bringing the African Union closer to the African people by selecting creative professionals who think outside the box, dare to challenge conventions and offer new and original work through their chosen materials, techniques and subject matters.
LOATAD, together with the AU, the UNDP and Africa No Filter, has now announced the final winners of the AU20 writing project. Here are the five winners and a bit about their professional backgrounds.
i) Nour Kamel from the Arab Republic of Egypt. Nour writes about identity, language, sexuality, queerness, gender, oppression, femininity, trauma, family, lineage, globalization, loss and food. She is the author of the chapbook “Noon” in New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Sita).
ii) TJ Benson from the Federal Republic of Nigeria. His writing explores the body in the context of memory, migration, utopia, and the unconscious self and his works have been exhibited, published in several journals, and shortlisted for awards. The author of three novels, his latest, People Live Here, is out now.
iii) Musih Tedji Xaviere from the Republic of Cameroon. She is a writer, activist, and Moth Storyteller. Her debut novel, These Letters End in Tears, won the 2021 Pontas and JJ Bola Emerging Writer’s Prize. It will be published in the US and UK in 2024 by Catapult and Jacaranda Books.
iv) Tony Mochama from the Republic of Kenya. He is a poet, author and senior journalist at The Nation Media Group. He is a three-time winner of the Burt Awards for African Young Adult Literature and is a recipient of the Miles Morland Writing Scholarship. His futuristic novel, 2063 – Last Mil Bet, was published by Oxford University Press.
v) Sue Nyathi from the Republic of South Africa. She is the author of four novels, her latest, An Angel’s Demise, published in October by Pan Macmillan. A Zimbabwean based in South Africa, she was shortlisted for the 2020 Dublin Literary Award and is a JIAS Fellow ’22.
According to reports, LOATAD received an overwhelming number of applications from across the continent, and the selected writers represent the best of African literary talent as well as the literary future.
Started in a one-room office, the library attracted significant national and international attention and quickly outgrew itself. In 2020, it re-branded to LOATAD and moved to a bigger space that includes a special collections/archive room, a screening room and extensive outdoor event space.
As a complete African library, it also has an archive, a museum, a writing residency and a research facility. It is dedicated to the collection and visualization of authors from Africa and the African diaspora from the late 19th century to the present.
The library has over 4,000 volumes of literary fiction and narrative nonfiction dating from the early 20th century to the present day. From Algeria to Kenya and from Liberia to Zimbabwe, the collections represent the rich diversity of the African continent and its vast Diaspora.
LOATAD’s focus is on books by writers of African descent, including African, African American, Caribbean, Black European, Afro-Latin, and Indigenous writers. LOATAD is located in Accra, Ghana.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against President Tinubu-led administration and the 36 state governors at the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja.
In a statement issued by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, it stated that the provisions of the amended Cybercrimes Act remain vague, arbitrary, and repressive, enabling authorities to criminalize legitimate expression and restrict media freedom.
The suit challenged the alleged misuse of the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act 2024 to suppress freedom of expression, saying it violates human rights, particularly those of activists, journalists, bloggers, and social media users.
The organisation seeks several reliefs, including a declaration that Section 24 of the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act 2024 is unlawful and inconsistent with Nigeria’s human rights obligations; and an order directing the government to repeal or amend the legislation in compliance with international standards.
“The provisions of the Cybercrimes (Amendment) Act 2024 have opened the door to criminalising legitimate expression and punishing activists, journalists, bloggers, and social media users.
“This is a harshly punitive approach that fails to provide safeguards against misuse, particularly for the peaceful and legitimate exercise of human rights,” the SERAP statement read.
However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President Bola Tinubu on Saturday, January 11, 2025, left the shores of Nigeria for the United Arab Emirates to take part in the 2025 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW 2025).
He was accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Yusuf Tuggar, and other senior government officials.
A statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that Mr Tinubu was invited for the event by his UAE counterpart, Mr Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
He will attend the programme starting from today, Sunday, January 12 to Saturday, January 18, 2025.
However, President Tinubu is expected to return to Nigeria before the end of the summit on Thursday, January 16, 2025.
The event, themed The Nexus of Next; Supercharging Sustainable Progress, is expected to bring together global leaders to accelerate sustainable development and advance socioeconomic progress.
In addition, it will enable policymakers, business, and civil society leaders to explore pathways to fast-track the transformation to a sustainable economy and evolve a new era of prosperity for all.
ADSW, a testament to the power of collaboration, has been held annually for over 15 years. It provides a global platform to foster multi-stakeholder cooperation in addressing global challenges and accelerating growth.
It has birthed high-value agreements and strategic partnerships between governments, industry leaders, and clean energy pioneers worldwide, driving impactful alliances and advancing the sustainability agenda worldwide.
At the event, President Tinubu will stress his administration’s reforms, including those related to energy sufficiency, transportation, public health, and economic development.
The Nigerian leader and his entourage will also meet with the emirate’s leadership to discuss issues of interest affecting the two nations.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, remains at the centre of a storm of corruption allegations that have plagued his tenure.
Critics, anti-corruption groups, and opposition leaders have accused him of financial mismanagement, extravagant spending, and abuse of office, yet no substantive action has been taken against him.
Recent reports by People’s Gazette revealed that the 40-member Lagos State House of Assembly, under Mr Obasa’s leadership, spent over N43 billion on “back-up vehicles for honourable members” between January 2023 and the third quarter of 2024.
This expenditure, part of a larger N90.5 billion disbursed for questionable projects, has raised concerns among Lagos residents about the state’s priorities amid widespread economic hardship.
Budget documents showed the Assembly spent about N30.1 billion on vehicles in 2023 and about N13.3 billion in the first three quarters of 2024. Critics argued that these sums, which equate to roughly N1.1 billion per lawmaker, were frivolous.
Mr Obasa has faced allegations of corruptions since early in his tenure, including reports of owning over 60 bank accounts used to misappropriate public funds. In 2019, People’s Gazette reported that the lawmaker conducted suspicious foreign exchange transactions totaling $2.4 million (N1.1 billion). These funds were allegedly funneled through personal accounts and mutual fund investments.
In October 2020, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) invited the Speaker for questioning over allegations of fraud. Despite evidence of financial impropriety, including allegations of inflated contracts and misappropriated Assembly funds, the EFCC has yet to take decisive action. Protests led by civil society groups like the Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CISNAC) demanding accountability have yielded little progress.
Mr Obasa has consistently denied these allegations. Speaking at a recent plenary, he dismissed claims of spending N17 billion on constructing a gate as “spurious and funny.”
He also refuted allegations of spending N200 million on a nonexistent thanksgiving service, attributing the accusations to political fear-mongering ahead of the 2027 elections.
However, critics have dismissed these defenses as self-serving. A 2020 House panel, composed of Mr Obasa’s allies, cleared him of wrongdoing—a decision labeled a “kangaroo judgment” by anti-corruption advocates.
Prominent anti-corruption campaigner, Mr Olanrewaju Suraju, has urged the EFCC to act on the mounting evidence against Mr Obasa, warning that his actions undermine legislative independence and public trust.
“These revelations justify the urgent need for mechanisms to enforce probity and accountability in public office,” Mr Suraju said.
Despite the scandals, Mr Obasa appears unperturbed and untouchable, with analysts attributing his survival to political connections and an entrenched culture of impunity.
As Lagos State prepares for the 2027 elections, the Speaker’s continued tenure symbolizes a broader challenge of corruption and governance in Nigeria’s political landscape.
Observers now await further developments as pressure mounts on anti-graft agencies to act decisively.
For Lagos residents, however, the scandals highlight a troubling disconnect between political leadership and the needs of the people.
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