BY EKANPOU ENEWARIDIDEKE

All through the  remarkable literary career of Professor JP Clark (the First African writer to be appointed professor of English), the centrality of his plays has always been the relevance of the culture of his own people. Clark, the man of memorable electrifying verses, the man who vomits poetry naturally without conscious effort, deserves all the accolades in the world for beaming the beauty of the Ijaw culture to the world. Clark skillfully makes a break from this his universally acknowledged cultural zone when his play The Wives’ Revolt emerged in the literary scene after many years of hibernation in Kiagbodo where his MUSE supposedly dwells.

In The Wives’ Revolt which signals Clark’s first valedictory  speech to culture, he awakens and addresses new realities in his environment. Perhaps bothered by the challenges thrown up by his environment he artistically feels a sense of responsibility to come up with his prescriptions and claim the garment of human rights activist in abandonment of the garment of culture activist. In a dance of commitment towards this new task, Clark in his play (The Wives’ Revolt) of three characters with six parts designated as PROCLAMATION, DISSENT, WALK-OUT, LULLABY, RETURN AND  RECLAMATION, draws attention to the crises in Erhuwaren village bred by an oil company.

The crisis stems from an oil money given to the community by an oil company operating in their land. Erhuwaren as an oil company is made up of the descendants of Udumede and Meghwere in four wards – Ikemeghwre, Ikikimedi, Adjesaba and Urevwodo.  The oil money is divided into three parts in the community vis-a-vis elders, men of particular age-group and women. But this arrangement does not go down well with the women who hold the view that the money should be divided into two equal parts between men and women.

In protest, the women abandon their responsibilities in the home leaving the homes and streets of Erhuwaren littered with dirt and roaming goats. Faced with this reality of dirt in the community, a law that bans the ownership and rearing of goats is proclaimed by the men. This proclamation gives birth to the exodus of the women through Otughieven, Eijophe, or Igherekan, Imode to Eyara. In Eyara the women are accommodated and cared for by Ighodayen,  a notorious prostitute. By the time the women are back to Erhuwaren through the repentant pleas of the men leading to the sharing of the oil money into two equal parts along with other compensations as demanded by the women as grounds for resolution of the matter, they are all infected by Ighodayen and to cure this affliction, a doctor and team of nurses are brought from Warri to administer treatment on the women.

Prof. J.P Clark

The resolution of the matter in favour of women signals Clark’s espousal of equality of women with men –  a feminist touch that marks a new thematic direction in the writings of Clark. Beyond the feminism the man espouses and celebrates anchored by the three characters – Okoro, Koko and Idama – Clark also in the play awakens other serious issues such as ; the issues of underdevelopment of host communities by oil companies, self-inflicted underdevelopment in host communities, the primacy of women liberation, greed and arrogance of men, marital faithfulness of women, insensitivity of oil companies to development matters, host communities knowledge of the manipulative dance of oil companies in their areas of operation, danger of female prostitution, men’s disrespect and distrust of women and men’s vindictiveness. Though Clark explores all these issues with only three characters, artistically he makes the reader feel and hear the echoes of other characters relevant to the development of the plot.

The message of JP Clark in The Wives’ Revolt is clear, timely and relevant viewed against the backdrop of the challenges of the time. Clark’s message outweighs the language of the play in importance because the language is a departure from Clark’s characteristic hypnotising poetry – a reality that has severally provoked critical questions as to whether Clark and his poetic muse have clashed, or could it be another Clark’s artistic choice employed to reinforce the thematic orbit along which the play journeys.

Interestingly in a move that bears semblance to a continuum of Clark’s break from cultural preoccupation in drama, he has delivered his second valedictory speech to culture, this time with a radiant retention of his characteristic poetic genius. The traces of poetry in this second valedictory  speech throws Clark up as a poet extraordinaire who has reconciled with his MUSE hitherto on the run in The Wives’ Revolt. It appears Clark’s poetry assumes a more compelling force with  age. Clark’s second valedictory speech to culture is embedded in his latest play ALL FOR OIL – a play in which he raises and addresses new issues and situations relevant to the Ijaws, Urhobos, Isokos, Kwales and Itsekiris in particular, and Nigeria in general. Even in All For Oil the posture of Clark is that of a human rights activist bothered by the exploitative distortions in the lives of his people.

Clark’s metamorphosis in recent plays parallels an activist poised to address the encumbrances of his people revolutionally using any available or handy instrument – perhaps all in commemoration of artistic emancipation from his erstwhile cultural enclosure or paradise.

In All For Oil, a play of nine parts artistically designated as REGATTA AND AFTER, SCHOOL REPORT, COURT RETURNS, ENVOYS, CHAINS, BRIEFING, AUDIENCE, RITE OF BROOM and SICKBED. Featuring characters like Chief Bekederemo (Ambbakedereme), Mitovwodo, Fuludu, Nemugha, Branuvwere, Piniki Ederume, Egerton Shyngle, Chief Dore Numa, Bar Rolle, Messenger, S.L. Bucknor, Chief Babigha, Chief Egbe, Fiobode, Johnson Nana, Col. M.C. Moorhouse, and A.C. Burns, the fulcrum of Clark’s portrait is that of Chief Bekederemo, Chief Dore Numa and Col. M.C. Moorhouse. The vision of Clark in All For Oil is communicated through the network of the activities of these three characters. Characters like Mitovwodo, Fuludu, Nemugha, Branuvwere, Piniki Ederume, Egerton Shyngle, Bar Rolle, Messenger, S.L. Bucknor, Fiobode, Chief Babigha, Fetaroro, Chief Egbe and A.C. Burns merely play roles that intensify and illuminate the behavioural compositions of these three characters. In line with the design of the play, these characters cannot achieve their devices without the complementary roles of the other characters. The roles of the other characters bring out the true qualities of Chief Bekederemo, Chief Dore Numa and Col. M.C. Moorhouse – qualities thrown up for analysis, examination, criticism, commendation, approbation and disapprobation as a vehicle for Clark to build his prescriptions, stated or implied, on the problems of Warri – problems rooted in the colonial days.

The play All For Oil opens with a celebration that brings together Chief Bekederemo, chief Dore Numa and many others. Frederick Lugard, the Governor-General and Commander-in-chief of Nigeria on tour of the southern provinces, is in Warri as part of the tour. Ijaws, Itsekiris, Urhobos, Isokos and others have come to honour the visit with different cultural displays and performances. Chief Bekederemo, Chief Dore Numa and others storm the place with their varying displays. When the party is over, Chief Bekederemo and his entourage troop to chief Egbe’s compound in Ogbawangue for a supper because Chief Egbe, his friend, is married to Fiobode, Chief Bekederemo’s sister. Chief Dore Numa angrily storms Chief Egbe’s compound with the accusation that Chief Bekederemo and Chief Egbe connive to disgrace him at the reception party. His complaint is that Chief Bekederemo’s outfit and the boat’s display are applauded by all the people in the reception party. He is overshadowed and outshone by Chief Bekederemo in the party when the focus is supposed to be on him (Chief Dore Numa) as the paramount Chief. They explain to him that it is no plot to disgrace him before His Majesty. Specifically, Chief Bekederemo awakens him to the fact that his flags flown are below his (Chief Dore Numa’s) flags which proclaim him as paramount chief, the Olu of Ijaw, Itsekiri and Urhobo written boldly on them. Chief Dore Numa calms down and admits that he cannot see all that because he cannot read and write. His anger dies down and they begin to talk as friends, dine together and depart happily.

In another direction Chief Dore Numa perfects a move to arrest Chief Bekederemo over a problem between Chief Babigha has with Chief Bekederemo. Chief Bekederemo burns down Chief Babigha’s shrine in his avowal to clear Kiagbodo of evil and destructive gods. Chief Babigha’s daughter, Ditimi, is married to Chief Dore Numa and so he reports to him of his humiliation in the hands of Chief Bekederemo. Chief Dore Numa mobilises a column of armed soldiers, white men and porters to go to Kiagbodo and arrest chief Bekederemo. They troop to Erhuwanren and force Chief Okajivor to lead them to Kiagbodo. At that time Piniki Ederume is on errand by Chief Bekederemo to see Chief Okajivor. From one of the porters bound for Kiagbodo chains fall to the ground and a corporal helps the porter to drag it back into the box after hitting him with the butt of the gun as a warning. The porter cries out thus, ‘reserve your fire for Bekederemo’ and through this the people in Erhuwanren know that they have come to arrest Chief Bekederemo.  It is Okajivor’s wife Enyevwiara who discovers this and makes it known. In advance, Okajivor sends Piniki back to tell Chief Bekederemo.

Prof. Clark

The white men and the soldiers come to Kiagbodo to arrest Chief Bekederemo who gives his account of the matter convincingly and strikes up acquaintance with them immediately to the puzzlement of his detractors. He throws a party for them and the issue of arrest dies.
As a trader in palm oil and kernel with the Niger company in Ganagana, Chief Bekederemo has a strong repulsion against the manipulative devices of Chief Dore Numa in Warri and Benin. Guided by his lawyer Egerton Shyngle, he brings genuine reports against Chief Dore in the office of Col. M.C. Moorhouse, an officer administering the government of Nigeria in the absence of Sir Frederick Lugard. Chief Bekederemo’s complaint is that Chief Dore Numa parades himself as the paramount ruler of Ijaw, Urhobo and Itsekiri and under this facade he is busy leasing people’s land to the colonial government without the knowledge and consent of the people. He demands an end to this nonsense. Col. M.C. Moorhouse tells Chief Bekederemo that senior officers from Lagos will come to handle the matter and that he should expect justice. Even in making the complaints, Chief Bekederemo does not have confidence in Col. M.C. Moorhouse and would have preferred to see Frederick Lugard because Chief Dore Numa and Col. M.C. Moorhouse are friends in perfidy and exploitation but Egerton Shyngle and Col. M.C. Moorhouse persuade him to expect justice from the authority. However, on the day the senior officers come to Warri to handle the matter, Chief Dore Numa and the Resident Commissioner of Warri, Douglas, lie to them that Chief Bekederemo who is arrogant and recalcitrant has severally turned down their calls. It is only Chief Egbe and his brother Mr. Skin who are in the meeting. The senior officers leave without Chief Bekederemo’s account.

Chief Egbe and Mr. Skin send Fiobode to tell chief Bekederemo of the outcome of the meeting. Chief Bekederemo’s plan to present complaints against chief Bekederemo is aborted. Fiobode reveals that the Court (Bar Rolle) tells them in confidence that the Chief Dore Numa has been striped of majority of his powers by the officers from Lagos, each group of people in the province now made autonomous in the running of its own affairs and court and in the sending of a member to the Court Of Appeal. Even this striping of Dore’s powers is not sufficient for Chief Bekederemo who expects more. He grows infuriated when Fiobode tells him the outcome.

In anger, he opts for a broom from Fiobode and sweeps out the life of Chief Dore Numa for the perfidy in these words: “… with my left hand I sweep away the life of Dore.

May his life go out with all his minions he placed in all courts to preside in Izon, in Urhobo, in Isoko, in Kwale, in Aboh, and even in his own Itsekiri land, yes, everywhere the white man has overpaid him for the dirty services he has done against his own people. Whisk! Whisk! Whisk!. May Dore’s life go out like the puff of a foul wind. May it evaporate like the mist when the sun rises. May he leave behind no seed to increase the tree of his life. May his life end with his career….”

Chief Bekederemo’s manipulation by Chief Dore Numa and Douglas is followed by his illness. Chief Bekederemo becomes ill, confined to his sickbed. He feels within him that he will die, and out of deep concern, he asks his elder sister Yenken to die before him so that when he eventually dies, she will not suffer but she only claps in his face in derision.

To be continued.