By Damiete Braide and Jimoh Rasaki
For all, the New Year comes with new hopes and aspirations. But, for the Nigerian artistes, who have their studios within the Artistes Village of the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, things are no longer at ease..
Last Saturday, January 23, will not be forgotten in a hurry, as the management of National Theatre brought bulldozers to destroy their studios and properties worth millions of naira.
They alleged that the destroyed buildings were shanties being occupied by miscreants, but artistes and stakeholders have debunked such allegations, claiming that the artistes in questions are creative persons and not miscreants.
A renowned sculptor and painter, who declined to mention his name, observed that he was in anguish and pains as his gallery was destroyed, running into millions of naira.
“Since the demolition took place on Saturday morning, I have not been able to do any work. What have I done to the management of the National Theatre that they would destroy my property? Look at my fridge and electrical appliances and artworks! They have all been destroyed.
“The people who destroyed the place came with a large number of policemen. Thank God that I slept in my studio the previous night, and was able to salvage some of the works before the place was levelled. I have spent a lot of money in my studio, and my intention is to teach the young ones the process of making sculpture, but, now, it is no longer possible. Where do I start from? For the works that I usually do, I invest the money back into the business.”
According to Emeka Nwabara, a visual artist, the management of the National Theatre disclosed that the structures destroyed were illegal structures, but that was not the bone of contention. “Many of these structures got approval before they were built; they usually pay rent and other bills, so I don’t understand the illegality in it, and there was no notice about the demolition before then.
“The demolition of some parts of the Artistes’ Village has shown that, as a people, we do not value our arts. This cannot happen anywhere in the world where artworks are valued and appreciated. Arts and culture are so much valued in the history of things and the context of a nation and, when you don’t have anything to document your existence, that means you are a nobody.”
Harping on the demolished sculptural works, Nwabara lamented: “Most of the destroyed artworks were commissioned works; so, how does the artist go about it? Most of the artworks are sculptures, paintings, and one cannot quantify the artworks that have been demolished.
Obi Nwadubogwu, an artiste and stakeholder, noted that the demolitions were disheartening, because the studios demolished were not illegal structures, adding that the artworks destroyed were heavy works, and they were not given any notice prior to the demolition.
“When you enter the Artistes Village and see some of the artistes wearing dreadlocks, the impression is that they are Reggae artistes, but, when you come closer, you would see how talented they are, and the dreadlocks are merely a form of identification.
“I have been in this artistes’ village for some months now, and I disagree that these artistes are miscreants. It is also disheartening that the policemen shot a young man on his foot, who was harmless; it is very bad. It is only in Nigeria that artistes are not respected and recognised.”
Nwadubogwu commended the way and manner the affected artistes have conducted themselves so far: “They have remained peaceful and resolute in their conduct.”
Another artiste, Justin Chinedu Ezirim, Chief Executive Officer of Squad One Productions, whose studio was destroyed observed that the destroyed items includes instruments, costumes and drums were destroyed. The management of National Theatre should have given the occupants some time to remove their belongings before destroying the place.
“It is sad that we have saved money to buy different equipment only for them to destroy them, where do I start from? We have different about costumes representing the different tribes in the country, our props and drum sets have all being destroyed.”
Uba Sinclair, an investor in arts and a lover of arts, observed that what happened in the early hours of Saturday came to me as a rude shock. At a time when the country is planning how to develop every sector in the economy to engage the youth to be self-employed and earn income, he regretted that, instead, some people had chosen to destroy the livelihood of these youth.
“How do we reconcile the fact that a man laid siege on the only hub of arts in West Africa and instructed that unarmed and defenseless artistes be shot? How do we quantify the cost of artworks that were destroyed? Looking at the quantum of the damage that was done, it runs into millions, and that is revenue loss not just to the artistes alone but also to the country.
“My word of encouragement to the affected artistes is that, in the face of discouragement, they should be stoic and hold their peace. I hope the government will act swiftly in protecting the industry against those bent on destroying the industry.”
While Aremu Tope Babayemi, aka Baba T, noted that the management of the National theatre claimed that the back of the Theatre was filled with hoodlums, why should he demolish the second gate of the NCAC? “The back is now open, and the place is exposed. We have been complaining about that for years,” he said.
He informed, too: “Although there was a directive from the Minister of Culture and Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, that the shanties around the National Theatre should be demolished, any well meaning Nigerian will identify the places that ought be destroyed, but the management hid behind the instructions of the minister to settle old scores.
“This community was foremost in resisting the attempt in the concessioning of the National Theatre three years ago. As artistes, we stood firmly, and disagreed with it on principal, just as the minister said we were contented with the exhibition in the National Theatre, and, if the man running the theatre could not engage with stakeholders in the industry, how is he going to programme the place?
When Daily Sun contacted the Director-General of the National Theatre, Kabir Yusuf, he was unavailable for comments, as he was still out of station at press time.