Mr Ben Tomoloju is a respected culture activist, film critic, playwright, theatre director and former Deputy Editor of The Guardian . As someone who has followed developments in the culture industry, Uncle Ben T as he is fondly called in this interview with Vanguard Arts bares his mind on the controversial issue of the planned concession of the National Theatre into a five-star hotel, shopping mall and car-park by the Culture and Tourism Minister. Excerpts.

Nwakanma was educated at the prestigious Government College Umuahia, the English-type boarding school for boys where famous Nigerian writers — Chinua Achebe, Gabriel Okara, Christopher Okigbo, V.C. Ike, I.N.C Aniebo, Ken Saro-Wiwa and others went before him. He earned a degree in English at the University of Jos, the MFA in Poetry at the Washington University in St. Louis and a PhD in English from the Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri. He has worked as a journalist in Nigeria and internationally as Group Arts Editor of the Vanguard and Deputy editor of the Sunday Vanguard.

In a bid to further create a solid baseline for effective and stable cultural ties between China and Africa, the Chinese Ministry of Culture recently held a symposium, which presented Africa’s culture in its full potentials.

Uganda’s Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi has won the Kwani? Manuscript Project, a new literary prize for unpublished fiction by African writers and will receive the winning prize of 300,000 Kenyan Shillings (equivalent $3500) for her novel The Kintu Saga.

Engineer Adegboyega Osideinde is one of the few Nigerians who have contributed his quota to the development of electricity in Nigeria. The University of Ife trained graduate of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, who had worked in many departments in the electricity industry for many years believes that there is need to educate the public about domestic electricity utilisation especially now that the President Goodluck Jonathan led government is battling with the issue of power reforms.