Obi of Onitsha urges govt to invest in youths’ creativity, talents

Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Achebe, has urged governments at all levels to invest in youths’ creativity and talents in order to give them a sense of belonging and promote creativity, industry and productivity. Achebe said this on Sunday in Enugu at the Grand Finale and Award Night of ‘Life In My City Art Festival’ (LIMCAF) 2023, with the theme: “Fix It”. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the art festival grand finale, which got 111 entries from all zones in the country and witnessed regional art exhibitions, was sponsored by MTN Foundation. The traditional ruler noted that youths should be supported in the areas of arts, creativity and entertainment, as they were already doing well both at national and international levels for them to “be the best in the world”. He also urged youths in the country to be focused and keep on pursuing positive ideals, adding: “You must always bring out that creativity and originality of your work for it to be better appreciated. “For our youths to do better and continue to do well in the arts, creativity and entertainment, individuals, corporate bodies and most especially, governments at various levels, must encourage them both financially and morally. “We have to provide the needed support, guidance and mentorship for them to be great and make us proud,” the royal father, who is also the Patron of LIMCAF, said. Achebe paid glowing tribute to the Founder and Chairman of LIMCAF Board of Trustees, Elder K.U. Kalu, as well as MTN Foundation, Ford Foundation and others for sponsoring and sustaining the festival as well as making it a global brand. In his goodwill message, Chairman of MTN Foundation, Mr Dennis Okoro, said that the telecommunication giant was sponsoring the festival as part of its civic social responsibility to support youths in the country and bring out the best in them. Okoro assured that the foundation would continue to sponsor the festival, adding: “it is good we catch them young and direct their mindsets to positive ideals and productivity. “In MTN Foundation, our mandate focuses on education, health and human empowerment, and the sponsorship of this event is part of the educational focus of the foundation.” Also speaking, a representative of Ford Foundation, Mr Dabesaki Mac-Ikemenjima, lauded LIMCAF for organising the event and for integrating female artists and people living with disabilities (PLWDs) into the festival. Mac-Ikemenjima assured that the foundation would continue to support the festival for many more years to come. Chairman of the event, Retired Rear Admiral Allison Madueke commended LIMCAF for providing a platform to engage no fewer than 100 youths in the country and for ensuring that their lives had focus. Madueke called on government to make investing in youths a top priority, saying that this would enhance their future and create greater prospects for them. Chairman of the seven-penal jury, Mr Ayo Aina, said that the jury had taken time and efforts to go through the works and given its dispassionate judgment “We are commending LIMCAF for instituting women and people living with disabilities categories,” he said. NAN reports that a consolation cash prize of N50,000 as well as endowment prizes of between N200,000 and N300,000 were given to some of the artists who made it to the finals. For the major categories, Pricilla Orina won the best textile art/fashion and got N500,000, while Ebenezer Adebayo won in best graphic and digital photography with a prize of N500,000. Also, Ezechi Nwokeocha, who won in best drawing, went home with N500,000, with Philip Audu winning the best ceramics with N500,000. Kelvin Ijiko, from Lagos zone, won best painting and mixed media with N500,000 prize while he also won the overall winner of LIMCAF 2023 Edition with N1 million. In a brief interview, Ijiko, whose work was titled: “Decayed Decades” and done on Pyrography medium, thanked God, the organisers and sponsors of the event for providing him a national platform to showcase his talent. “I got the inspiration in my dream and immediately after waking up, I started working on it physically and bringing it to reality. Today, God has crowned my efforts with success,” an elated Ijiko said.