By Prisca Sam-Duru

As Nigerians witnessed a smooth transition from a democratic government to another which is being piloted by President Muhammadu Buhari, expectations have been pouring in. Nigerian writers are not left out as some of them expressed diverse expectations from the new government. Excerpts.

Professor Akachi Ezeigbo.

Akachi-Ezeigbo

We in the literary sector -writers, literary critics and literature enthusiasts – join other Nigerians to welcome the Buhari government. Like every other sector in the country, we have a number of specific expectations. Apart from the general issues such as power (electricity), security and youth employment, we look forward to witnessing improvements in the education sector at all levels- primary, secondary and tertiary.

We want to get every Nigrian, especially the youths reading and expanding their knowledge through having access to good books and well equipped libraries. Literature should be made a compulsory subject in the secondary school and in the School Certificate Examination. Thus our youths will have access to the type of liberal education that can humanize then and make them cultured, tolerant and disciplined people.

Profound knowledge of literature and history must go hand in hand with the knowledge of science to develop the total human being worthy of this nation. That is the only way to bring about the change we need to create a better nation.

Odia Ofeimun

President Buhari has to be able to stand up and win respect for his sheer guts rather than let himself be overawed by undue pressure from so called friends abroad and allies at home who are merely thinking of clipping coupons. He needs to cultivate a grounding with ordinary Nigerians to withstand inevitable pressure. And by ordinary Nigerians I mean the millions who need good health, genuine education, jobs, freedom of speech , movement and association.

Odia-Ofeimun

If he does not face these then he will have an impregnable communal problems. Already, he has a Fulani problem which he can only solve if he forgets the cut of Arewa entitlements. The question is, would he who belongs to everybody and nobody at the same time, find the skill and patience to do it right?

Of course he would also have a Yoruba and an Ndigbo problem which he can only deflate by realizing that all ethnic groups want virtually the same things that the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of state policy prescribe.

Yes each ethnic group may wish only its own to be in bounty. The first thing to note, and quite a pity, is that like Goodluck Jonathan, Buhari has no serious political party. Just a rabble with ill – digested political slogans. So if he is determined, he will have to learn to work truly outside the box. Within the box, he will be fixed in the way that the pre – existing cabals fixed Goodluck Jonathan after mauling President Olusegun Obasanjo and leading him down the garden path until he thought he needed a third term to square up.

Of course, there is no reason for the cabals to use the same old methods. Remember that Goodluck tried to say that the cabals, not mentioning the market gurus from outside, were overpowering him. Well because his party had a short attention span and was all scatterdiagramatic in vision, he could not tackle the requisite levers. A heartily fractured ruling party collapsed into pressure as a matter of policy.

As for Jonathan, he could not make his claims ring true in the face of an opposition within and outside his party determined to use every means possible to deny reality. Now reality has just caught up with everybody.

Betty-Abah

Betty Abah, writer and activist, stated that “My expectation for the new administration would be to put policies in place to beef up the dwindling book sector in Nigeria.

Tax waivers and outright holidays for book imports won’t be out of place. We witnessed last year or so when the Ministry of Finance imposed an increase of 50% tax on books import. That to me was just insane. How do you impose tax on an industry that is dying and needs to be revived, wouldn’t that be putting a final nail to the coffin? This government, more than all others, must have a book-loving face.

Also, there is need to put up policies and initiatives to encourage reading and writing. Writers must be encouraged so they can profit from their craft as against what obtains now. As a writer, for instance, I have been able to do five publications, not necessarily because of the gains but the passion to document my thoughts and inspire others. (Most times bookshops don’t even make returns, it’s that bad). But nothing says one shouldn’t gain from one’s sweats, literary sweat in this instance.

The reading culture especially among young people also needs to be revitalised. A reading generation is a leading generation, but rather, we have seen academic performance among students consistently nose-diving all these years due to multifaceted distractions. Government’s incentives and aggressive initiatives can make a major difference.”