March 23, 2013
PRESS STATEMENT
In the death of Chinua Achebe, Nigeria has lost a global literary and cultural icon, a foremost nationalist and father of African Literature. Chinua Achebe was a colossus who bestrode the literary world. He set the tone and direction of African Literature, capturing in the process the total African experience: from pre-colonial and colonial periods through decolonisation and its discontents to national ferments, disillusionment and alienation.
Although better known for his novels, Achebe was an unusual master craftsman who distinguished himself in all the genres of Literature. He was an essayist, poet, playwright and critic who was unrelenting in his criticism against injustice, oppression, corruption and other vices in the society. He captivated the world with his simple narrative as well as inspired generations of African writers who took pride in their cultures.
Achebe was a principled man and an unignorable moral force known for his quiet rebuke of bad governance through his gestures. He did not speak often but whenever he did, it resonated through the nation. He was a critic who offered prescriptions for national rebirth, firmly holding accountable poor leadership as the genesis of Nigeria's problems. The accident that rendered him physically-challenged for about three decades was avoidable and a sad commentary on the state of our roads. His death at 82 is a blow to the world of the arts and a huge loss to that exclusive club of pioneers of African writers.
The greatest tribute Nigeria may yet pay this icon may not just be the naming of an institution after him or to put his face on our currency note, but to reinvent the education system that produced this unique generation of writers: Achebe, Soyinka, Clark et al.
Adieu our great patriot and icon of the emancipation of the masses.
Comrade Promise Adewusi, mni
Ag. President.
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