Akeem Lasisi
In his new collection of poems, titled Flora’s Love Colony, Tares Oburumu gives himself a peculiar assignment. He wants to capture Nigeria’s history in a poetic fit. Daunting as the task is, the project has become so successful that the book has made it to the ultimate stage of the $100,000 Nigeria Prize for Literature, founded and sponsored by NLNG.
How did Oburumu turn raw history into the poetic form that has now been so elevated? How did he manage the process of turning a potentially boring account into an elevated art? By the way, how does he write poetry? He had the opportunity to share his experience last Wednesday when he and his co-finalists—Ogaga Ifowodo and James Eze—spoke with some literary journalists. While Ifowodo is on the millionaire’s list with his Why Does God Need a Gun, Eze is in the race with Unbind Me Now.
“I am one of those who believe that writing involves not just imagination, but also your lived experience,” Oburumu noted. It was at an interview session NLNG organised in Lagos a week ago. “And when you write about someone else’s lived experience, you don’t just imagine it—you have to make it your own. There must be a place for empathy when you write. When writing a story that is not yours, you acknowledge that it is not yours, but you try to inhabit the experience that the person or event embodied.”
On the sacrifice he had to make turning a colonial history into a trendy verse, he noted that he looked at areas where he knew he lacked direct knowledge. Beyond conducting research, he had to imagine those moments and feel as though he were inside the thought process itself. He was thus able to strike a nexus between what he was feeling and what the event or situation he was writing about must have felt like.
Oburumu said, “It was a very tedious, tortuous journey moving from imagination to paper—from history to a slim collection of poems. Yet I was able to say a great deal about the history of Nigeria. It started with research and a few pieces of information, which I put onto paper.
“Then I began imagining what Flora was like, what Lugard was like, and how they came about naming Nigeria. What were they thinking? I couldn’t know exactly what was in their minds, but when I placed myself into their mindset at that specific point in time, I began asking myself questions. They were concrete questions about how it was done—living inside their minds to understand, even in a small measure, how they thought when they named the country. Through that perspective, and with the limited information I gathered, I wrote most of the poems in the collection. It was a tortuous journey, but I had to try.
“The fact is that I had this in mind: to put the whole history of Nigeria into a book. And because I’d seen that in the literary world, particularly the Nigerian side of the perspective, this history hasn’t been recorded in art form, I decided to write Flora’s Love Colony.
“And one thing that struck me was the fact that the name Nigeria came from Flora. She was the one who gave us that name, Nigeria. And it wasn’t given in consultation with the people of the country. It was just a makeshift arrangement between her and Lugard, and then they named the country Nigeria. Thereafter, the amalgamation came in. And Lugard was also the chief architect. Both of them were the architects of the name and the amalgamation of Nigeria. So I began to ask myself, these things are supposed to be in book form.
“And for me, poetry, I think, was the best option at that time. So I decided to write Flora’s Love Colony. It started from 1914, when the country was amalgamated. But before then, we had the slave trade, which is also in Nigerian history. It started with the slave trade, starting from pre-colonial times. It is a little bit like the origin, an original history of Nigeria. But it’s not the only story of Nigeria’s history. I think long before we became Nigerians, we were a people. There must be a link, a lacuna—a linkage between when the colonial masters invaded us and the time when we were innocent, ruled by our kings. The society was well-structured, so to speak. So there must be a missing link between then and when the colonial masters invaded us.”
Research
“Because I don’t have access to a large number of books—in fact, I don’t even have a library, which is something I hanker for—when I decided to write it, the initial point of entry was research. I had to do research, and I needed books. Then I came across a very slim publication online—I Googled it—a slim paper that Flora edited. And I found out that Flora was childless.
“During the period when the name was given, as I said earlier, there was no consultation. So I kept asking: where were the historians of the country back then when the name was given? I needed books and thorough research, and this research led me into many things that were not previously known to me or others.
“Since I lacked access to extensive books, when I got hold of that little bit of information, I had to work with it. It was challenging, but I had no alternative. So I made do with that text.
“That single source broadened my horizons regarding what I wanted to write. Inasmuch as it was slim and didn’t offer a wide range of expansive knowledge, the information I gathered broadened my perspective, and I began to imagine.
“So I would say my book came from a little research combined with a wide imagination.”
The message
“The message is simple: we continue to be deeply influenced by the British Empire long after its departure. This influence manifests in how we dress, how we speak our native languages, our habits, and our preference for foreign goods.
“It arrives in waves, much like the current trend of ‘Japa’—people seeking to leave the country. There is an ongoing form of neo-colonialism at play.
“I am trying to send a message to Nigerians that we are long overdue for mental emancipation. We are long overdue to reconnect with our origins and reclaim our individual and collective identities.
“Ultimately, it is about the past, present, and future—and what we must do to liberate ourselves from residual British influence.”
If he wins
“I was only exposed to books at the age of 14—a time when many children have already read extensively. I was not fortunate enough to have early access to literature, and holding a physical paperback book came late for me.
“Growing up in a polygamous family under difficult financial circumstances, buying books was not a priority. When I was around 14 and in primary school, I started looking for libraries in my area, but there were none.
“Eventually, I came across a small cupboard containing a few books. That was where I discovered Treasure Island, Chinua Achebe’s Chike and the River, and Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist. Those books captivated me and drew me into the world of reading.
“Looking back at my community, I see that many children today still lack access to books. They live through the same conditions I experienced at their age.
“When a crew came to my village to shoot a documentary about my work, I told them the focus should remain on the children. If I win this prize, my goal is to build a community library where children can read freely.”
