How Gomba won 2023 Nigeria Prize for Literature

THE 2023 edition of The Nigeria Prize for Literature climaxed last Friday at Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, with the academic Obari Gomba joining the illustrious ranks of past laureates with his work, ‘Grit’.

Dr Gomba, a multiple award-winning writer who teaches Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Port Harcourt, walked home with the prize and cash award of $100,000 ahead of Henry Akubuiro (Yamtarawala – The Warrior King) and Abideen Abolaji Ojomu (The Ojuelegba Crossroads) at the Grand Award Night themed ‘Redefinition’.

In announcing Gomba’s ‘Grit’ the winner of this award cycle for drama, Chairperson of the Advisory Board, Professor Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, described it as a dramatic journey into the destructive impact of soul-less politics of power and profit which brings out the beast in man.

She stated that the play builds the motivations for every character’s actions in a lifelike manner “with apt characterisation and purposeful manipulation of plot and conflict. The play is filled with conflicts that create the mood of the inevitability of tragedy, and the language is full of twists that entertain amid pain.”

Professor Adimora-Ezeigbo also announced Eyoh Asuquo Etim’s entry “Herstory versus ‘History’: A motherist rememory in Akachi Ezeigbo’s The Last of the Strong Ones and Chimamanda Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun” as the 2023 winner of The Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism, which comes with $10,000 prize money.

With his emergence, Gomba joined Soji Cole (Embers, 2018), Sam Ukala (Iredi War, 2014), Esiaba Irobi (Cemetry Road, 2010) and Ahmed Yerima (Hard Ground, 2006), who had previously won the drama category of the Prize which rotates annually amongst prose fiction, poetry, drama, and children’s literature.

Welcoming guests, the Managing Director of the Nigeria LNG Limited, the prize sponsors, Dr. Philip Mshelbila, said the event’s theme emphasised the need for redefinition in a rapidly changing world characterised by pandemics, geopolitical events, climate change, technological advancements, and more. He stated that redefinition involved looking at things in new ways, whether at a national, communal, or personal level, which often begins with re-evaluation, reassessment, and revision of established positions.

Dr. Mshelbila expressed excitement about Nigeria’s prospects in the energy transition journey, particularly with natural gas as an enabler, highlighting NLNG’s support for the Decade of Gas policy.

“In NLNG, we supported the declaration of the Decade of Gas, which the federal Government launched in 2021 to help Nigeria achieve industrialisation, economic prosperity, and tackle energy poverty by using gas as an enabler, which aligns with NLNG’s vision to be a globally competitive LNG company helping to build a better Nigeria. I have expressed optimism in several fora that the Decade of Gas policy would enable the country to catch up with the industrialised countries of the world if successfully implemented as planned while at the same time decarbonising our ecosystem.

“Our bid for redefinition is further contextualised through the sponsorship of the Nigeria Prizes: the Nigeria Prize for Science, Literature, and Literary Criticism. This year, the theme of the science prize is Innovation for Enhancement of Healthcare Therapy. We need our people to be physically, mentally, and emotionally in their best form to tap into the wealth attainable through Nigeria’s reasoned potential. Likewise, the genre for the 2023 NLNG Prize for Literature is drama. As is apparent, drama has an adept way of communicating themes and messages for our deeper reflection,” he stated.

Speaking on the event’s theme, the Special Guest of Honour, His Highness Muhammad Sanusi II, stated that the theme transcends science and literature and that it was time for Nigeria to redefine itself.

Professor Ameh Dennis Akoh, a Drama and Critical Theory scholar at the Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ebonyi State, chaired the three-person jury that assessed the works. The others are Professor Osita Catherine Ezenwanebe and Dr Rasheedah Liman.

Professor Victor K. Yankah from the Department of Theatre and Film Studies, the University of Cape Coast, Ghana, was the International Consultant for this year’s edition of the Prize.

Professor Hippolite Amadi, the 2023 winner of The Nigeria Prize for Science, also sponsored by NLNG, was awarded $100,000 for his ground-breaking work on respiratory technologies for keeping Nigerian newborn babies alive. He was announced the winner in September by the Advisory Board led by Professor Barth Nnaji.

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