Comments on naijablog: On Welcome to Lagos (guest post)

The above rejoinder was written in response to Ada...

2010-05-09T07:45:46.660+01:00

The above rejoinder was written in response to Adaobi Nwaubani defense of the documentary 'Welcome to lagos by the BBC by on facebook and reprinted on www.nollywooduncut.com

A Rejoinder to Adaobi's article post by someon...

2010-05-08T14:45:30.446+01:00

A Rejoinder to Adaobi's article post by someone on Facebook

Adaobi,
From the way you express yourself, it is obvious that you have been out of the country for a very long time. In fact your article reveals that you have adopted the superior ignorance and disparaging language of the west in referring to your own country people. Several times, in your article, you refer to Nigerians and Africans as “tribes”, an extremely derogatory and condescending term. I was almost sure you would soon use the word, “brute” and its close relative, “savages” but you kindly stopped just short of that. Oh, I see you actually did use the word ‘savagery’.
You say, “But hardly have I come across passionate expressions of "Oh my goodness! There are people in our country living like this? What shall we do about them? How fast can we act?" Like I said, obviously you left Nigeria a really long time ago, or perhaps you were born in the UK? These things are not new; Ajegunle, Oshodi and these other slums have existed in Nigeria for ages! It is not a hidden secret! However in the same token, all over the western world, my dear, you will be surprised to know, there are slums!!! Don’t get me started on the great USA, with homeless people wandering the streets looking for soup kitchens. Perhaps you need to see the footage on the slums of New Orleans, shown on TV after the Hurricane Katrina?
My dear, there is nothing neurotic about Nigerian’s preoccupation with their international image; no one wants to wash dirty laundry in public. Our shortcomings are our own internal matter, to be handled internally, not to be broadcast abroad by the BBC and discussed in the international arena.
The Nigerian outrage over the smear campaign is justified! Most of what the western world sees and hears about Africa is primitive, negative and condescending, even in this era of advanced technology. How we live in Nigeria is a national problem, not a U.K. or a U.S. problem. They have their own ‘skeletons’, which they don’t generously publish internationally as documentaries.
How we deal with “everyday shames!” You talk about “Nigerian families frantically hiding away relatives with obvious mental health issues rather than seeking help for them.” That is not just a Nigerian issue. There is no country in this world where people broadcast and share as water-cooler conversation one’s family’s mental history? Who does that? All over the world, mental issues are stigmatized, it is not a Nigerian thing! Even here in the US, people still have difficulty admitting that they or their family members suffer depression, or schizophrenia, to name a few more-kosher mental illnesses. I am not even talking about kleptomania or straight ‘madness’. Even people with post-natal depression don’t want to be stigmatized! Be real!
(For the full rejoinder click here
http://www.nollywooduncut.com/have-your-say/170-a-response-to-guardian-uks-adaobi-nwaubani-article-on-welcome-to-lagos

(This rejoinder was written by Dr. Judith Atiri a political scientist based in New York, USA.

Have the same opinion, wrote about it on my blog a...

2010-05-07T23:05:38.039+01:00

Have the same opinion, wrote about it on my blog a few days ago, check it out!

God bless you Umeike!! Brilliant wite up, you have...

2010-05-06T12:42:08.537+01:00

God bless you Umeike!! Brilliant wite up, you have said it all. Your comment shows you have a very broad point of view. Its good to listen to someone that sees it from all sides not minding their bias. Thank you!

another simplistic argument. yawn. we off that.

2010-04-30T01:53:47.864+01:00

another simplistic argument. yawn. we off that.

Am utterly shocked at Wole Soyinka's criticism...

2010-04-29T15:36:08.219+01:00

Am utterly shocked at Wole Soyinka's criticism of the documentary. Me thinks the old man is overdoing his thing now. Will did a fanastatic job with the docu which i just saw, prior to which I must confess I was condemning, but seeing it tells me what powerful stories lies on the stage-the dumb site through which the story was told. Most intriguing for me was the guy making feedmeal from blood. I honestly hope the health harzard he faces from the smoke and heat can be looked into while some support are given to him. But it hurts that such a hectic duty earns him such a meagre pay. Yet these people live a great life (joseph's family and Slender's zeal. they have such an organised way of life as chaotic as it may seem.

Does anyone recalls Slender's statement about the unity of Nigerians as a people being most evident on the dumpsite.I love this story and it's perphaps the best to tell the world of our strength and survival in the face of daunting challenges.I hereby call on the Lagos state to immediately withdraw the petition submitted to the BBC as that smacks a very myopic move. Eko o ni baje o

I loved the documentary, i think BBC did a good j...

2010-04-28T17:43:09.704+01:00

I loved the documentary, i think BBC did a good job and should be commended.

been down in the slums for so long all i can see a...

2010-04-28T15:16:25.246+01:00

been down in the slums for so long all i can see are stars http://bit.ly/ce2GM7

Thanks for the new perspective. I too believe it w...

2010-04-28T12:56:43.732+01:00

Thanks for the new perspective. I too believe it was an excellent documentary. People fail (or refuse) to recognise the fact that the dump was just the stage on which the story was told. The documentary was about the story brought to us through the characters. You cant get all hung up about the stage when a brilliant story is unfolding before your eyes. How short-sighted can one get?

I watched the first docu and felt nothing but pride for my people; Joseph, 'Vocal Slender' and all those hard working Nigerians on the dump and in Makoko (second documentary). Shame, shame, shame on Nollywood for selling us all those fake stories about fake people and their fake lives....these here are the real people with real stories to tell. Nollywood needs to get real, get its hands dirty and take a leaf from 'Welcome To Lagos'.

But I am equally ashamed that I have driven across the 3rd Mainland Bridge, right over the top of Makoko and never given them a second thought. Not for a second did I stop to ask myself who they are, what they do and how they survive. If I am like that, how much more our so-called government leaders?

And now we hear the Nigerian High Commissioner to the UK is embarassing himself by... protesting? Protesting that what? He should be protesting to the Nigerian governments past and present, not the BBC. He should protest to IBB, Abacha, OBJ dem.
His and their shame is the greatest of all.

I hear the final episode was spent with a governme...

2010-04-28T09:49:12.446+01:00

I hear the final episode was spent with a government task force cleaning up lagos, and shows the efforts of the state government to beautify Lagos. Hopefully that will appease some people.For those that do not know, vocalslender.com is under development - his life could be turning a corner soon.

writers like you will never get the point. Change ...

2010-04-28T00:32:59.381+01:00

writers like you will never get the point. Change starts from the bottom up not from Ikoyi down. This is the best documentary by far. If you need to watch ikoyi watch Naija movies. These are real people with real lives...people that are invisible. The BBC did an excellent job can't thank them enough.

@ Umeike you've said it all and it such a sham...

2010-04-27T23:37:53.717+01:00

@ Umeike you've said it all and it such a shame that the documentary is being condemned in some quarters but who cares?I'm marking the days off my calendar .I can't wait for the third and final episode this week.

http://www.facebook.com/felakutimovie

2010-04-27T17:16:11.051+01:00

http://www.facebook.com/felakutimovie

Also, I like the fact that rather than simply port...

2010-04-27T17:10:01.108+01:00

Also, I like the fact that rather than simply portraying the place as a dump (metaphorically and otherwise) as Western reporters are prone to do, he went to an actual dump to see how people are living off what we (read Westerners and city-slickers) waste. By so doing, he has put a perspective on slum-dwellers and made them human - not just "those people that live on the dump in Africa". So people can now relate to them and see that they are human, just like you and me, with the full range of human emotions and expectations/aspirations. It wasn't just "please send $5 now", it was showing the strength of the human spirit through adversity.

Yes, I think it was a moving documentary too - a l...

2010-04-27T16:59:15.245+01:00

Yes, I think it was a moving documentary too - a little bit too Avatar (fantasy oriented story) in its production, but as you said - the producer/director didn't make it up, it was all real.

It broke my heart when I saw the young man making chicken feed from the abattoir waste - he is obviously very intelligent, if only there was more assistance for bright, enterprising young folk .....but they say necessity is the mother of invention - I'm sure it would never have crossed his mind if he had been sitting comfortably in his father's marble palace. But I hope some good Samaritan can find him and assist him before he develops lung cancer!

Brilliant write up. Like the writer mentioned, a l...

2010-04-27T16:43:33.302+01:00

Brilliant write up.
Like the writer mentioned, a lot of people just aren't allowing themselves to see past the dump which is unfortunate.