Monday 3 November 2014

President Jonathan congratulates Professor Tess Osonye Onwueme at the celebration of her Archival Collection


Celebrating the Archival Collection of Dr Tess Osonye Onwueme (
Photo: Courtesy University of Wisconsin Eau Claire).


ADA DIKE
 The President of the  Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR, has congratulated one of Nigeria’s best playwrights, Professor Tess Osonye Onwueme at the celebration of her Archival Collection.
Speaking at the event which at the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire, United States of America On Saturday, October 18, 2014, President Jonathan said: “It is my pleasure to be here today at this celebration of the Archival Collection of Professor Tess Osonye Onwueme, eminent University Professor of Global Letters at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire.”
Mr. President, who was represented by the Special Assistant to the President on Documentation, Molara Wood, described Onwume as “unarguably Africa's most famous female dramatist.”
 In his words: “The letter informing me about this event from the Chancellor and Foundation offices of the university, eloquently describes Prof Onwueme as "a national icon that Nigeria and the United States shares with the world".
“That description succinctly captures the essence of the great woman of letters and internationally acclaimed scholar and poet who earned her place in the globe writing plays with themes of social justice, culture and the environment. She belongs to the distinguished community of conscience for whom art is not for its own sake but rather for the sake of life. In her various literary exploits she has used her art to give loud voices to traditionally silenced views such as African Women, life in Africa, the youth and the global poor.
 This special recognition by the university where she has distinguished herself as a Professor of Cultural Diversity and English is the icing on the cake on her too numerous recognitions and awards over the years.
“I congratulate Prof Onwueme and encourage her to continue to churn out more and more literary outputs to reshape our world which is in dire need of pedagogy from nurturers of global civilization in her mould.  It is also my wish that this great icon will continue to serve as a figure of expression of the great bond between Nigeria and the United States of America.
 “We the people of Nigeria are proud of her and her accomplishments, just as we cherish the monument Wisconsin University has erected in her honour,” he said.
Prof. Onwueme, according to him, is one of the most important playwrights that our country Nigeria has produced. “She is, without doubt, the most published and celebrated female playwright to emerge from the continent of Africa. We are most proud of her exceptional achievements and outstanding contributions to Literature and Drama, and the world of letters as a whole.
 “Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, the Honour is befitting. Very few playwrights are candidates for the canon with their very first works. Prof. Tess Osonye Onwueme is one of those rare few. From the beginning, her work stood out with a striking poise; and three decades of prolific literary production have only confirmed, with copious proof, her original promise.
“ Prof. Onwueme’s career is characterised by a trajectory of consistency, range, beauty and energy. Among her most memorable works are: the epic dramas ‘Tell It To Women’ and ‘What Mama Said’; ‘Then She Said It’ (a play) and ‘Riot In Heaven’ (drama for the voices of colour). She has engaged the environment in every sense of the word. She has explored gender relations, and has created a fresh paradigm for performance aesthetics. Her works have also helped revive a dimension of that unity of conception and performance that the world is in danger of forgetting.
“ Having emerged as one of the most vibrant voices of the radical theatre tradition in the Nigeria of the 1980s, Onwueme went on to become a leading voice of politically committed drama in our country. She was one of the ‘Cock Crow Voices’ in what is now known as the ‘Alternative’ tradition of Nigerian letters during our Second Republic, fearless artists that engaged in the daring quest for a better Nigeria.
 “Through the fierce beauty and commitment of her work, Onwueme has stood against all forms of oppression, including gender discrimination and environmental exploitation in the Niger Delta.
 According to Prof. G. G. Darah, Prof. Onwueme “challenged the orthodoxies of drama by women writers... she took on the issues of women victims of exploitation in the oil industry and attendant environmental crisis... Many of her female protagonists are activists who resist marginalisation and gender stereotype.”
 “Dr. Onwueme’s works have become canonical and we in Nigeria are proud of her achievements. Her energy remains a source of inspiration to generations of young men and women at home and now, evidently, in the rest of the world. Her commitment to her art has also inspired a new dimension of respect for both artistic and scholarly excellence.
 We are blessed that God gave us an artist of the calibre of Prof. Onwueme, and we are proud to share her gifts with the world.
 “For inviting me to this occasion, marking the donation of the ‘Tess Osonye Onwueme Papers’ to the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation, I am most grateful. Very clearly, our beloved playwright’s papers will now become a permanent resource for scholars and students for posterity. This is how it should be: rewarding excellence and creativity with recognition and legacy.”

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