Isidore Okepwho and Inspiring Change: How Novelists Can Play a Role in Bringing about Awareness to the Issues of the Niger River Delta
Isidore Okepwho, an author from Abraka, Nigeria, is a champion for justice within the Niger River Delta. His novel Tides spreads awareness about the corruption of the area, specifically within the government and through the destruction of the environment. His novel is made up of a letter exchange between two reporters working to tell the story of the Niger Delta in order to bring about awareness and inspire change, much like Okepwho himself seeks in his own life.
Government corruption is one of the main issues of the Niger River Delta. Government officials have been known to take bribes and turn their heads from injustices for the sake of the oil companies. The oil industry provides a considerable amount of income for the country. In Okepwho's novel, he brings attention to this issue. He provides several examples in which citizens of the Delta are taken away without question and put in jail because they speak out against the government or against the oil industries. Another issue related to government lies in the fact that there is constant change of who is in power. Therefore not a lot of change ever occurs, because no person has enough time to create change. In the novel, one of the main protagonists, Tonwe Brisibe goes to meet with an old friend who happened to hold a position in the government. When Brisibe made clear his concerns with the drinking water in his town, his friend overlooked his request. This meeting represents the difficulty in creating lasting change for Nigerians.
"You have come to me with a problem, and perhaps if we got down to it we could knock together something that might sort out the problem somehow. But what’s the use? Tomorrow a new governor will be brought to this state, and he might replace me. If you’re still interested in your problem, and the new commissioner is interested, he will want to revise everything we’ve said and done. Tonwe, you’ll find there’s no use fighting for a cause. These are not times for idealism, my friend ." (80)
Another issue that Okepwho addresses in his novel is the destruction of the environment. [The way you set this up, you make it sound like government corruption is a completely separate issue from environmental destrcution. Is this how they are treated in the novel? It seems to me that they are intricately related in the case of the Niger Delta. You can still treat them in separate paragraphs, but if you see the connection, point out how they are connected as you move on to discuss the environment.] In the Niger Delta, many people rely on fishing to make their living. However, the Delta is becoming a dead zone due to oil spills and industry activity near the water where fishermen would normally work. Additionally, many citizens can taste impurities in their drinking water. The government and oil companies, however, attribute this to other causes and refuse to acknowledge the problem. One part of the Okepwho's novel that exemplifies this issue is the instance in which a group of fishermen from Ebima went to visit officials from Atlantic Fuels with a simple request. The search lights that the oil company uses on the water was disrupting the activity of the fish, and therefore the success of the fisherman. The company, however, was more concerned with their own interests.
[You miss an opportunity here to call into question whether the people of the Delta have been included in "the general prosperity which oil had brought to Nigeria"!] The meeting ended in an altercation between the fishermen and soldiers who were dedicated to protecting the interests of the oil company. Shots were fired, the fishermen were beat, and the oil company ultimately disregarded any upheaval they had caused to the local Nigerians [(page). Then end the paragraph by wrapping up this section in your own voice.]"What, he asked, did the inconvenience suffered by a few scruffy fishermen matter to the general prosperity which oil had brought to Nigeria?" (12).
Isidore Okepwho's novel may be a work of fiction, but it is based on very real events, and can give readers a useful insight into the overarching problems of the Niger River Delta. Furthermore, the novel proves how much of an impact Nigerian writers can make by not only putting their country's suffering into words, but also in spreading those sufferings to a broader audience. Fiction specifically can reach a larger audience than other modes of reporting such as journalism, often times due to the fact that corruption forces journalists' silence. Additionally, fiction often times sparks a sort of interest in people that nonfiction does not inspire. It is crucial that authors like Okepwho come forth with their stories in order to rally support from the rest of the world. It is in this way that Tides is able to bring about awareness to the issues of Nigeria.
[You have a good analysis developing here. One question I have is to what extent does this novel address the international pressures from foreign governments, global demand for oil, international markets, and multinational oil corporations? Whether or not the novel addresses this question, a postcolonial reading of the novel would be well advised to consider the asymetrical power relationships in the geopolitics of the global oil economy. In other words, can you say something about the neocolonial dimensions of the political corruption and the environmental negiglence in the novel? Or, if these are not emphasized by Okepwho, do you think this is an oversight that we readers should not overlook? Include a works cited and respond to the essay in Ogaga Okuyade's collection.]
