PERSPECTIVES IN THE PRACTICE OF THEATRE FOR DEVELOPMENT: A CONCERN FOR AN IDEAL YOUTH THEATRE

Austin Chibueze Okeke

Department of Theatre and Film Studies

University of Nigeria, Nsukka

E-mail:austinchibueze@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

This essay examines a selection of literature on Theatre for Development (TfD) as well as the general perception of Youth Theatre. The choice for these two is first, to establish the various perspectives to the practice of Theatre for Development, which took its stem from Paulo Freire’s work Pedagogy of the Oppressed,and subsequently from Augusto Boal’s adaptive concept of “Theatre of the Oppressed.” These perspectives shall be examined as “Schools of Thought”. The aim will be to examine the practical mode of the concept as explored by certain practitioners in the field, highlight the strength of each practice and the extent of audience involvement. Secondly, effort shall be made to elicit an ideal format for a youth-based theatre. Lastly, the study shall recommend a highly participatory theatre which will be largely hinged on Boal’s perception of “Theatre of the Oppressed”. 

THE ROLE OF CHRISTIAN RELIGION AND DEMOCRACY IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIA

Ishaya Mallo Makpu

Department of Religious Studies

Nasarawa State University, Keffi

E-mail: ishayamakpu@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

An examination of ancient Greek writings on democracy and the teaching of Christian Religion we read in the Holy Scripture reveal that Christianity and democracy can pave the way for a better Nigeria of our time and any other times. We  therefore, plan to show in this paper that true Christianity and true democracy has the answer to the political problems of present day Nigeria. This paper will discuss this under the following sub-headings: definition of terms (Christianity and democracy), the mission Christian Religion and democracy on earth, democracy in practice in Nigeria today, Christianity and democracy the solution to the present day Nigeria problem.

THE POLICY OF NON-LETHAL OPTION AND THE PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN CONVENTIONAL WEAPONS IN CONTEMPORARY WARFARE: IMPLICATIONS ON SOCIO-HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN THE 21ST CENTURY GLOBAL POLITICS

¹Victor Chidubem Iwuoha, ²Nwanolue Bonn Obiekwe Godwin

¹Department of Political Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka

²Department of Political Science, Anambra State University, Igbariam Campus

E-mail:tchydubevick@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

The increase in human population, characterized by the pursuit of individual and groups divergent interest, has brought about armed conflicts of all kinds in the 21^st century global politics. This singular scenario has necessitated the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction by some nations. The attendant purpose for the production of such weapons, among other factors, could be to launch offensive and defensive attacks on the enemy territories, as the need arises. However, such countries often fail to appreciate the negative implications of possessing and applying such explosives during combat. Hence, this paper sets out to examine “The Policy of Non-Lethal Option and the Prohibition of Certain Conventional Weapons in Contemporary Warfare: Implications on Socio-Human Development In the 21^st Century Global Politics”. In this direction, the following issues were revisited with the intending belief that the use of weapons of mass destruction in armed conflicts would be reduced to the barest minimum. They include:- Development of Non – Lethal Weapons, the Application Of Non-Lethal Weapons In Contemporary Warfare,  Implications of the Use of Non-Lethal Weapons in Armed Conflicts: “Taser as a Model”, Deaths and injuries related to Taser Use, the 1980 United Nations Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions of Certain Conventional Weapons Excessively Injurious to Socio-Human Development and  Calmative Agents.

RELATIVIZATION IN NIGERIAN PIDGIN ENGLISH

Ofoegbu Cyril Okechukwu

Department of English

Anambra State University, Igbariam Campus

Email: ofoegbucyril@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

Relativization is a concept in syntax that deals with the relationship between an NP (or Noun) earlier mentioned and another part of that same sentence, represented by a relative pronoun. This other part of the sentence is headed by a pronoun and this gives us a reason to call it a relative clause. A relative clause is usually a subordinate clause that modifies a noun. It is formed when one clause is embedded into an NP of another clause to produce grammatical sentences. The questions are now then do we relativize in Nigerian Pidgin English and is it possible for relativization to take place in Nigerian Pidgin English given the fact that some people still look at it as a debased form of standard English in Nigeria? Nigerian Pidgin English is a pidgin, which has a geographic base in Nigeria. It is politically and sociolinguistically different form other pidgins in the world. This Nigerian Pidgin English is English based or English related because most of its vocabulary is derived from English. It also has Nigerian local languages as its underlying influence, it can be said that its vocabulary is English while its grammar is Nigerian. This paper will discuss the syntactic structure of relative clauses in Nigerian Pidgin English, a language spoken and understood by nearly all Nigerians (though with variations) in Nigeria. One thing worthy of mention here is that the process of relativization in Nigerian Pidgin English is quite different from that of English language (even when it is the parent language). The relativization structure in Nigerian Pidgin English allows the relative pronoun to come after the subject of the sentence. It can also come after the direct object in a sentence.. In some cases there are two relativizers in a sentence in which case the first relativizer is downplayed for the second to function properly. Finally, this paper will explore how the movements of relative pronouns are determined in the structure of the Nigerian Pidgin English.

THE BIBLICAL LAW: A PANACEA TO REDUCE CORRUPTION IN NIGERIA

Ishaya M. Makpu

Department of Religious Studies

Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nigeria

E -mail:ishayamakpu@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

Corruption is dishonest, illegal, immoral behaviour. It is a spiritual debasement and deviation from the law and standard of God. It is an aftermath of an action conceived and fathomed in the mind of man and carried out. Nigeria as a nation has a lot of corrupt leaders and need to be rescued from this deadly vice. Our political leaders have destroyed our economics and made many people impoverish. Many of our people have lost their traditional values. Corruption has enslaved us. The question what is the remedy for this ugly situation? This paper examines the meaning and causes of corruption in Nigeria. It will examine biblical law as a model to reduce corruption in Nigeria and gives some recommendations.

Keywords: Corruption, Biblical Law, Ten Commandments, Model, Panacea. etc.  

THE MANAGEMENT OF THEATRE FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA: A STUDY OF SELECTED RIVERINE AREAS IN OJO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Komolafe, Ayodele Michael

Department of Theatre Arts and Music

Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos

E-mail: ayokomolafetiata@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

I am sure most of us working in the development sector know about “funders”, “consultant”, “client”, high anxiety and obsession with ‘deadlines” and “deliverable” ! So much that the “beneficiary” takes the backseat and the “process”, gets buried in the backyard! So when some whistle –blower shouts, where has all the money gone, we run helter-skelter, come up with magic wand, called EVOLUTION. (Emphasis mine) so we embark on a time bond, limited to 50 A4 pages, Time New Roman font size, 10 single lines spacing “deliverable” called Evolution Report! In which we disrobe the project deliverables layer by layer in order to put our finger on either that physical deformity, or muscular contour that we feel was solely responsible for winning or losing the race! Better, if we can gets hold of some community members (numbers) reinforcing our view point (Sharma, 2006:5).  The problem militating the practice of theatre for development (TfD) both in the West and Africa, Nigeria specifically, dwell within the TfD paradigms adopted. The practitioners and scholars have said TfD needs no manage skills to take place. This position has severally presented TfD workshops as an ad-hoc thing. The submission by Sharma above vividly summarizes the methodology and objective of the practice. Which runs counter to development? It is the application of the effective management skills and its applicability that it can affect the people’s lives. The intention of this paper is to look at the various problems affecting the practice and proffering a management model that we have applied on three Riverine TfD workshops. The under this review are: Itegbesa, Irewe and Ojota. Our methodology shall be to selectively appraise TfD workshops and submissions by practitioners and scholars after itemizing some of the problems faced by the practice, present our own management model in relation to its application (success and failure) in the Riverine community identified. Part of the observations we made was that good application of management skills will positively impact on the people.           

FEDERALISM, ETHNIC POLITICS, STATE AND RELIGION IN NIGERIA

Abdur-Rahman Olalekan Olayiwola

Department of Political Science

Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos, Nigeria