Osarenren Canvasses Promotion Of Poetry
TO commemorate World Poetry Day, Convener of Naija Poetry Fest, Godson Osarenren, has stressed the need to promote literacy among youths, saying this will ensure a better society for all.
Osarenren spoke at a programme organised to celebrate poetry, tagged: ‘ Unleashing the spellbinding power of spoken and penned words,’ held at the University of Lagos ( UNILAG).
The event featured spoken word poetry competition, short plays, rhythm and poetry ( rap) and gifts, among others. Three winners emerged with the overall winner getting a $ 4,000 scholarship award.
According to Osarenren, poetry has become a way to learn and understand cultures and the emotions of other people, stressing that it is a mirror of the society.
He said: “Poetr y mirrors the society and people get the benefit of understanding deep verses in different perspectives. This is going to be a yearly event where young poets aspire to become better poets.
“We are doing these to encourage literacy and reading culture. That is the essence of everything we are doing,” he said.
On his part, an author, Silver Ifedigbo, stressed the importance of technology in poetry, saying it will further amplify and support the creative process. “Technology encompasses a lot of things and it has been incorporated into writing a long time ago. Research is no longer restricted to a physical library; it can be done even on the phone. Technology will amplify and support the creative process. Creative minds will always be distinguished regardless of technology influence.
Also, Dr Nwachukwu Egbunike, a poet, urged government to support the education system so as to increase distribution channels for the publishing industry.
He advised Nigerian poets to develop a never give up spirit to be able to withstand the season and times. “Government should provide for the common good of the society, boost the educational system to discover talents and increase distribution channels for the publishing industry. Make life easy and enabling for poets to deliver good jobs.