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Volume 1
Issue 1
24 Articles Published
Many American, European and Asian universities have embraced the Digital Humanities, popularly referred to as DH, as evolving trends in Arts and Humanities in the 21st century world. It has enabled the hybridism of qualitative and quantitative methodologies for humanities researches where computer-based tools are deployed for the analysis of humanistic data. However, the DH scholarship, which is an interface among science, technology and the humanities studies, has little scholarly awareness in sub-Saharan African universities, and Nigerian universities in particular. This paper, which adopts historical approach and critical distant reading as research methodologies, provides an overview of the digital humanities scholarship, its applicability in all fields of humanities, its adaptability to curation, archiving, analysis, visualisation, and its various computermediated tools. I went further to buttress some impediments to DH scholarship in Nigeria and to propose how Digital Humanities Association of Nigeria (DHAN), which has been recently launched with its temporary headquarters at the University of Lagos, could be used to provide public and scholarly enlightenment on digital humanities discourses, promote the pedagogy of Digital Humanities in Nigerian universities and offer some technical support for Digital Humanities Summer School. I have used Computer-Assisted Literary Analysis (CALA) to demonstrate how computer software could be used in the postcolonial analysis of African literary texts. By my critical literary analysis, Kourouma’s anthroponyms and toponyms are revealed to be postcolonially charged; the frequency of historical names demonstrated the level of culpability of all political figures implicated in the Ivorian crisis by the author in his war narrative.
Chukwuma Joseph Nnaemeka, Ph.D, Ezeanya, Chioma Winifred & Okoye, Uche Miriam
The scientific restrictions and scholastic dominance during the dark ages raised so many questions in the minds of thinkers. These questions led to a shift from a restricted pattern of thought to a liberal pattern where human beings started believing that they can solve their problems. This line of thought ushered in humanism. Humanism is an attitude or doctrine which upholds human agency and dignity in problem-solving. It also promotes existence as a mode of living over dependency on the supernatural to solve the problems of man. Morality which is a generally accepted rules or principles of right conduct in a society becomes relative in relation to humanism. This is because a considerable proportion of objectivity is accorded to morality through religion. Religion, in turn, gives a formidable consideration to the supernatural which humanism pays minute attention to. Placing these on a scale, this paper is aimed at demonstrating that humanism has done more harm than good by promoting moral relativism. Until a convincing alternative or substitute is provided to the idea of religion, it still remains the best available answer to the challenge of moral relativism. The historical, descriptive, expository, analytic and evaluative methods will be used for this research.
Christian C. Emedolu, Ph.D & Hilary A. Eke
Ian Hacking’s claim that reality is a human creation seems paradoxical and requires further investigation. A paradox is that statement which can only be true if it is false and false if it is true. It offers a counterintuitive conclusion or outcome, claiming that two apparently contradictory ideas are true. Often, paradoxes are intractable in the sense that their questions seem unanswerable and difficult, yet leading to some deeper truth. The relevance of philosophy in our science-intoxicated world hinges on its ability to investigate paradoxical situations in life. An investigation into the Hackinian position on reality seems to represent no boundary thesis between idealism and realism. Hence, this paper argues that reality may not be as Hacking, who was predominantly trained in the analytic tradition, has posited. The paper advances strong arguments to conclude that Hacking’s position concerning the human creation of reality is a paradox.
Ngozi Ijeoma Ugo-Ochulo & Clara Nnenna Inekwe
Language contact situation manifests differently in different linguistic environments. This may result from how the languages in contact interact. This paper examines language shift and its implications on the Igbo language. The Labovian approach to language study is applied in this paper. Two methods of data collection were adopted. One is audio recording of natural interactions between the researchers and some of the respondents. Two is a surreptitious audio recording of speech events between and among the respondents, all in different domains. The analytical method used in this research is content analysis. The results show that English is the dominant language predominantly used in the study area. The Igbo language is observed to be under threat and may be assimilated by the dominant English as there is a shift towards English. This indicates that in future, if urgent steps are not taken, a different variety of English may become the language used in the study area. Another implication of this language shift on Igbo is the loss of cultural values and identity of the people.
Peter O. Aihevba, Ph.D & Itohah E. Ekhator, Ph.D
This paper is a careful examination of the dynamic nature of culture and the cultural evolution of festivals, which are the major vestige and by-product of culture. The study utilised the literary or analytical methodology which enabled the researcher to garner relevant information from critical materials and interviews. The study examined the evolution of the Igue Festival of the Benin Kingdom. Three stages of evolution were clearly discernable, namely: the ancient, the modern and the global. The study concluded by asserting that if properly managed, organised and reinvented, the Igue Festival has the potential of developing into a substantial industry and cultural Olympiad, ensuring economic wealth, development and self-reliant growth.
Oko, Onyinyechi Lovelyn
Writing in school is challenging, especially for English as a second language learners. Many learners have acquired different kinds of attitudes towards the learning of writing in schools. That is evident even in their preferences. This work, therefore, investigated students’ preference in essay writing and the factors responsible for their choice. Two hundred first year students of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, were randomly selected from four different departments in the university and four essay topics: factual and fictional were administered to them in the Use of English course. An interview was also conducted on the students to know the reason for their choice of essay. The scripts were sorted according to their essay types. It was observed that the students who chose to write the narrative essay were more in number, followed by expository essay, then descriptive essay and, lastly, argumentative essay. The findings revealed that most students run from factual essay writing such as expository, descriptive and argumentative essays. The survey further gathered from the students who have preference for fiction that the essay is easier to learn and is less technical to write, that they like story telling because of the fun. The paper concluded that the preference for fiction indicates lack of adequate skills in factual writings. It also suggests that majority of the students devote more time to watching home movies which are mainly fiction and have little to contribute to the development of their critical ability (Freedman, 1999). The study, therefore, recommended that more attention should be given to the teaching of factual writing to students at all levels of education, especially in the secondary school before they encounter various academic writings in the tertiary institution. Moreover, process approach to second language writing pedagogy should be adopted in schools to enable students enjoy learning the act of writing in the classroom.
Volume 1
Issue 2
Anthony C. Ojimba (Ph. D) & Joseph N. Chukwuma (Ph. D)
This paper examines the role of philosophy within the context of Africa’s development, with a view to showing that in spite of Africa’s heterogeneous culture (Nigeria in particular), philosophy can play a critical role in their development in the 21st century. Philosophy represents a method of reflective, rational and constructive thinking, as well as a reasoned inquiry, while development designates the ability of a people to appropriate their total essence, in a total manner, as a people – a holistic vision in which they assume control of their own destiny. Attempts are made to articulate the concept of development and the essential roles of philosophy. These two will be examined critically to show how philosophy plays out regarding their interface. The paper employs the method of historical hermeneutics and textual analysis/exposition.
P. Nelson Graves, Ph. D
“Natural synthesis” compartmentalised the black art world. This essay unravels how the artist, EL Anatsui, in a “selective critiquing and re-evaluation of self”, dared to “wriggle out” of that quagmire. Thus, reactivating the dynamic terrain that lives and is animated from within the soul of artists, he forged a new path of creativity. With empirical analysis and the engagement of storytelling mechanisms, this essay unreels that artistry. Anatsui, in spite of his academisisation and art practice, takes a detour to cloth-making craft traditions, particularly the Kente weave and its autograph, for inspiration. Hence, the “vital and enabling” intellectual paradigm “resumptions, disappearances, and repetitions” make possible an intersection with arcane knowledge, while the “uniting representation” of the synthesis in the appropriation of Memory and Interview grounds the contexts within which each artwork is experienced. EL’s “non-fixed forms” make visible the temerity of new shapes and forms forged directly from the wellsprings and fecundity of African roots as exemplars of the art of the new dawn (Ben Shahn, 198:53). A deconstruction of EL’s artworks reveals the groundings of his discourses on assemblages of “Forgotten Biography” and the engagement of “mythopoetic imagination” (Marina Paolo Banchetti-Robino, 2011) in the recalibration of personal expression in language and imageries that inflect spiritual ties to ancestry and the reality of memory. This is a sufficient basis for the historical narration of the intersection of visual arts and knowledge.
Dede Samuel A., Ph. D & Dienye, Emimeke Henry
The crises rocking the Niger Delta region of the current Nigerian State had elicited a great debate that is underlined with an array of opinions, interpretations, viewpoints and logic. The emergence of Nollywood has affected and further exacerbated the debate with great consequences on the social, political and economic space of Nigeria. This paper, therefore, deems it fit to attempt a retrieval of the Niger Delta crises (struggle) from the court of Nollywood. Nollywood in an attempt to tell the story of the Niger Delta crises (struggle), had followed the general trend in the court of public opinion in the current state that situates the entire crises (struggle) as a mere struggle of some disgruntled citizens. The retrieval led the paper to several conclusions. The conclusions did inadvertently lead to the recommendations canvassed herein.
Emimeke, Henry Dienye
The lessons of world war I and II include the adoption of a multilateral approach and framework to the issues contending with global peace and security, but the persistence of these issues – poverty, wars, conflicts, terrorism, etc. had caused the international community and humankind to seek the ever elusive “perpetual peace”. For the African states, by virtue of being members and signatories to the United Nations Charter makes it binding, but the snag here is the fact almost all organs of the UN are controlled and dominated by nations with power, thus these organs being used as an instrument of penetration and control of nations without power. The adoption of the Rome Status meant and translated to International Criminal Court of Justice (ICC) came into being with the first line charge of helping the UN in prosecuting crimes against humanity. The discharge of the first line charge of the ICC had caused great uproar and misgivings in some states, especially those in the African continent. Only recently, some African states are known to have served the International Criminal Court notices of withdrawal from the Rome (Treaty) Statute. The actions of the African states elicited some questions that include (1) why are African states serving the court (ICC) with notices of withdrawal and (11) how did these African states arrive at this decision. Through the instrumentality of political economy approach, the paper did arrive at several conclusions among which is the systemic bias against the continent, thus the recommendations canvassed herein.
Edward Ugbada Adie, Ph. D & Yusuf Ninzim Shamagana
Popular literature consists of writings or literary pieces that have gained acceptance by a large spectrum of audience in the society. It includes those writings intended for the masses, and that can be distinguished from artistic literature in that it is designed primarily to entertain. In Nigeria, discourse on popular literature often features the semi-literary texts of
Hubert Ogunde’s theatre in the South-West, the Onitsha Market Literature in the SouthEast, and the Kano Market Literature (also known in Hausa Language as Adabin Kasuwar Kano or Litattafan Soyayya) in Northern Nigeria. Kano Market Literature rose to prominence in the 80s and 90s, entertaining its readers with many titles mostly woven around fascinating love stories. Owing to the popularity of these books today, many have been adapted into films while some go to radio programmes where they are also read, mainly to reach out to unlettered audience across northern Nigeria. This paper meditates on the attempt by BBC Media Action Nigeria and Society for Family Health (SFH) to leverage the popularity of this literature in communicating maternal and neo-natal health care in Northern Nigeria, a region with the highest recorded cases of maternal and infant mortality in the country. Given the peculiarity of the region (patriarchal, largely conservative, with many unlettered people), the study seeks to answer questions such as: How can popular literature, whose readers are mostly women, engender desired behaviour change on maternal and neonatal health care in Northern Nigeria where decisions in households are usually taken by men? Can this literature build the self-efficacy of women enough to adopt and sustain desired behaviour and attitudes towards maternal and neo-natal health care? How can the waves (potentials/popularity) of Kano market literature be further harnessed for effective communication for development in Northern Nigeria? The illustration for the study is Sister Iyami Jalo’s Ranar Bakin Ciki.
Gloria Mayen Umukoro & Patricia Thomas
The primary objective of this study was to show the relationship between language and culture using the Garifuna people, an Antilles community in Central America as case study. The study was supported by ethnographic research method in order to ascertain the relationship between the Garifuna people and their West African origin. The study further examined the socio-cultural aspect of the people, the language structure and concludes that there exists a relationship between the Garifuna people and their homeland, West Africa.
Volume 2
Issue 1
Apena, Jamal Adepoju & Ibrahim Wahab Adegbayi
Over the years the Nigeria’s democracy has been under serious threats due to unlawful deeds by politicians to buy the votes of electorate. This illicit act shines more at the 2018 Ekiti and Osun state gubernatorial election and drew the attention of local and international observers to the frantic act for power. It is quite unfortunate that despite various allegations as regard vote-buying which marred the aforementioned elections, the 2019 presidential and gubernatorial elections still witnessed the inglorious votetrading. Without doubt, majority of the electorate (most especially the poor) are always willing to sell their votes to the party which bid high without minding the consequences. These ones need to be re-orientated, re-informed, educated and in whole rehumanized to act in conformity with standard moral values for national development and specifically, avoid being a customer to vote-trading. Community Theatre as a theatrical approach for economic and socio political information, reformation and development cannot be left out in this process of propagation against vote-buying. Thus, this work focuses on community theatre as a means to rehumanize the local populace against vote-buying in Nigeria’s electoral process.
Nina Felicia Nwulu, PhD
Language, man’s intrinsic possession for communication can be properly utilized for the upliftment of the human person and the betterment of society. This is because the linguistic norm of every society contributes immensely to the development or destruction of an individual’s character or that of society. Leech in enumerating the functions of language sees one of them as directive. This aims at influencing the behaviours and decisions of others. The phatic function maintains and cements social bonds. If language plays these all-important roles towards man and his society, care should therefore be taken in crafting it to enable it achieve its desired purpose. The system of communication is the media which could be print or electronic. Social communication can also be through non-verbal means as exemplified in sign language, body movements, gesticulations etc. We are in a global age where information can easily be communicated within a flash. Also, the youths who by themselves are society’s future hope are constantly in the media in their quest for new information. In view of these challenges, it has become apparent that constant check and care is taken in language appropriations of a given society. This paper highlights the interface between the media and communication and how this could lead to the destruction or upliftment of man in society. The paper takes a look at what information people in the Nigeria society especially the youths are being fed with and shall ascertain the positive and negative values associated with such information. Given the foregoing therefore, this paper looks at the theories of language and communication and how they bear on the overall outlook of this work. The paper suggests ways through which communication can better society and man generally.
Nneoma Fyne Ugorji Ph.D
In every society, language and culture are two interwoven important aspects that constitute the makeup of mankind. The word Ngwa, refers to the dialect, the people and the geo-political area known as Ngwa land. The Ngwa people are found in Abia State in the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Of the seventeen Local Government Areas in Abia State, seven belong to the Ngwa people. These Local Government Areas are: Isiala Ngwa North, Isiala Ngwa South, Obingwa, Osisioma, Aba North, Aba South and Ugwunagbo. Some of the objectives of this paper are: to illustrate that every cultural aspect of man has its own linguistic repertoire, to demonstrate that culture is the dignity of man, to show that culture determines the extent that a norm is observed and the constraints it places on a people. The theoretical framework on which this paper is discussed is ethnography of communication. This theory is concerned with the sociocultural rules that form the basis of every linguistic act. The method of data collection for this paper is participant observation, where the researcher is absolved into the speech community for a period of time in order to perceive the salient features in the culture of a people. Some of the findings of this paper are: that language and culture are indispensable aspects of humanity, that personhood (humanity) is sustained by the constrains which culture places on man in his society, that every culture has its unique cultural behavior and linguistic repertoire and finally, that the acquisition of the appropriate cultural and linguistic behaviour of a person in a certain society is part of that person‟s social competence for existence as a person in his community.
Ekeopara, Solomon Chinedu
Moral decadence has permeated almost all facets of human endeavour in our contemporary society, and as a result, has raised issues of moral concern in the body of literature, social media and public debates. The entire constituents of the human moral structure have been wrecked by inordinate quest to eke out a living in a malaise society. The contemporary African society is one that is predicated on the negated relativist (subjectivist), hedonist, eudemonist and humanist world views and other forms of philosophical interpretations of moral values on the one hand, and in another hand, a lopsided conception of technology, civilization and learning that are anchored on physical development, materialism and market driven economy at expense of good moral values, good character orientation and attitudinal development. In effect, these negated interpretations of the concepts of development, morality, technology, civilization and learning and their agencies have compounded and ruined almost anything that has to do with the moral aspect of the human person. Given this anomie, this paper takes recourse to revisit the moral fabric of the human person and to re-examine the interpretations of these concepts with the view to showing how they and what they represent have led to the damage done to the foundation of human moral values. The paper further highlights points such as interdisciplinary approach, enthronement of value orientation, living philosophy, positive indoctrination, compulsory teaching of morals, as some of the ways to rebuild the broken foundation of human moral values in order to re-humanize the personhood in our contemporary times. The approach of this discussion will be essentially expository and analytical.
God’sgift Ogban Uwen, Ph.D & Margaret Funmilayo Adie
The paper seeks to examine peculiar creative expressions used during the 2019 general elections process in Nigeria with a view to carrying out a lexico-semantic analysis of the terminologies within the situational context they were used in consideration of the time, political space and interactants. The study adopts the Contextual Theory of Meaning as the relevant theoretical framework. Data for the study were collected by means of participant observation and such comments during political interactions in campaigns, social media platforms, political gatherings, news items and written materials. The findings indicate that, there were numerous of such terms generated and used during the various stages of the electoral process by the major actors such as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its adhoc staff, political parties, party loyalists and the electorate. The lexical items demonstrate the dynamic nature of language and its utterers to produce words or expressions for immediate needs-based communication which is politically motivated in this circumstance. It is observed that the semantic value of such lexical choices are contextually restricted and situationally restrained to, and comprehensible by the users within the 2019 electoral milieu driven by the peculiarity of the events. Aside from the fact that the study has broaden the scope of language used during political activities, the study also recommends multi-dimensional investigations into the political language in Nigerians in order to increase the already enlarging register of English for political discourse.
Victor, Stephen Dutse
The position of this paper focused on the dignity of the human person vis-a-vi his human right. Every human being has a purpose in life and an inherent dignity and the right to have their dignity respected and protected irrespective of their status, gender or social class. Dignity is a concept which talks about a person‟s intrinsic worth- a value of all people, which they are born with as human beings while human rights are “the basic rights and freedom to which all humans are entitled” such as rights to life, rights to work etc. The main thrust of this paper is based on the observation of the writer that the dignity and right of the vulnerable groups in Nigeria seem not to be adequately addressed. Some of the challenges observed as faced by these groups range from oppression, affront, discrimination, contempt and the impending effective implementation of the universal declaration of human rights and the dignity of the human person as enshrined in the proclamation of the General Assembly of the United Nations resolution 217 A in Paris on 10th November, 1948 as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and nations which is based on the fact that: all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood (Article 01 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights). Possible measures to eradicating the identified challenges will be presented in ensuring that the dignity and right of the vulnerable groups are protected. Way forward and conclusion are drawn based on the discussion.
Volume 3
Issue 1
Ogbonna, Ekaete Emeka & Idibeke Amos John, Ph.D
Visual arts exhibitions are displays of artist products for networking and economic gains. Some schools of thought sees it as a seed sewing venture with delayed gratification while others juxtapose aesthetics with functionality as a means of targeting patronage. The paper seek answers on the following questions; is visual arts exhibition an agent for economic stability to the artist? Are there issues intrinsically impeding the process of stabilizing the artist economy through visual arts exhibition? How can collaborative effort with art institutions enhance economic stability for the artist? What is the way forward? The method used was historical, interviews, unstructured questionnaire and participant observation method. Findings reveal that visual arts exhibition is a seed sowing, personal networking venture that will eventually mature for harvesting. The use visual arts exhibition to solve aesthetics and utilitarian purpose expands patronage beyond art collectors. The necessity for arts institutions to play their role of protecting the material interest of the artist was also established.
Overwhelming empirical experiences point to social environment as, perhaps, the most important factor that determines the extent a person can go in life. In situations where the social environment is conducive and geared towards the upliftment of peoples’ lives, individuals can maximise their physical and mental development. On the other hand, a poor social environment dwarfs peoples’ development and frustrates their ability to acquire skills, develop their talents and maximise their potentials. As such, living condition leaves a significant imprint in the making of an individual. Living in a society where an individual’s physical and mental development are given all the necessary incentives to survive and flourish have become cardinal to how social environment is conceptualised and understood. Yet, understanding the social environment demands a nuanced and complicated approach that can only be handled by disciplines that can articulate and interrogate every factor that controls and shapes peoples’ lives. Literature (here understood as imaginative literature) has its being, meaning and existence in the forces that operate and shape peoples’ lives – how human society is organised, the quality of life, the physical and mental development. That is, literature is both a reflection and a reflector of the social environment. However, in view of literature’s fictional character, there is need for a more serious supervision of its ideas. Philosophy, as a conscious critical reflection on issues can validate literary ideas by exposing them to philosophical evaluation – critical analysis, exposition and reconstruction. The study’s preoccupation is to show how exploring social environment through African literature on the one hand, and the introduction of philosophy to that exploration on the other, can be of immense benefit. The paper’s main interest is on a poem, “Shanty Town”, by an anonymous South African poet. In all, by utilising the advantage of the united effort of literature and philosophy, the study will contribute to a better understanding of social environment in Africa: the problems it creates, the best solutions to the problems and the agenda for future action.
Idowu Kojusotito Olatunji Ph.D.
Art generally has a universal language that could be understood no matter where such an individual life and comes from around the world. Language is a discrete unit of coded information of various sort, rules and principles with which meaningful information is sent to a particular individual or group for decoding through a prior universal agreement. When language is mentioned, majority of people think about encoded sound decoded by a hearer. However, it has been noticed that media such as visual and film arts do a universal communication in which encoded information is deciphered by so many people who do not speak the language of the artist or artiste. This means therefore that language spoken through art forms is universal than language emanating from the culture of the people, that is semiotism. This paper is looking at understanding the language in view of communication endowed to emanate from visual and film artists. The paper considers the theories of many scholars in establishing the thematic content of this discuss. It gives credence to the argument on how to understand various codes and signs in visual and film arts. The paper concludes with some suggestion on how to engage with the art total social development.
Prof. Dorothy Oluwagbemi-Jacob
Before the renaissance, the humanities were practiced rather than studied. As a matter of fact, in ancient Greece, the study of humanities was introduced as a basis of a broad education for citizens as it was the source of morals for the ordinary citizen. But in the modern era, students are given the impression that these subjects matter less. How invaluable is the study of the humanities? What connection does the study of the humanities have with the social environment? This paper aims to explore how the study of the humanities can impact or influence the dynamics of the social environment. The paper argues that the relationship between the scholar and the social environment can be antagonistic or transformative. The two influence each other in a dialectical tension.
NATHANIEL OJIMA SUNDAY & ENE EDEM EKPO.
Art with specific reference to literature is a saw-toothed weapon for the passing of social commentaries consequently; the place of art in the holding up to ridicule and correction of societal foibles cannot be disremembered in our global existence. This paper makes a literary incursion into how social behaviour affects political views and vice versa by using Aburiria as a metaphor for the economic and socio-political hypocrisies that constitute the ailing realities of African leadership and its modernity. Using the content-based methodology for gathering relevant data; this paper adopts the Marxist literary criticism to interrogate Ngugi wa Thiongo’s Wizard of the Crow. It is adopted as a theoretical framework to examine the revolutionary aesthetics in Ngugi’s novel under study with a view to reveal the place of the collective will of the common people in the struggle against existing bourgeoisie-induced forces that exploit their persons, labour and society. Our finding reveals that the solution to Africa’s problem is in Africa and not in the hands of governments of other nationalities as African leadership thinks. And this is the ideological thrust which constitutes Ngugi’s vision in his fictional art under study. This paper concludes that the African youth is essentially a force of hope for a better Africa.
Plays are created from and exist within the society. Therefore, a playwright does not operate in a vacuum, thus reflecting on the needs of the society in his dramatic writings. A playwright in this milieu is ganged by how he sees the society and points the way forward for possible change. This study is anchored on Marxist Sociological Theory and adopted Political Theatre approach as framework to connect with representation in society. To this regard, this article evaluates the dramatic exploration of Athol Fugard’s Sizwe Bansi is Dead in the citizens’ quest for better living condition in a society bedeviled with economic recession, discriminating legislation, social injustice and political instability. The study employed qualitative methodology to explore resourceful materials. Therefore, the method of this research is based on content analysis and library research as well as critical analysis of texts for insightful purpose This work recommends more encouragement to scholar-artists, most especially the playwrights, to mirror, depict and replicate the ailing state of the society in order to stimulate actions in an effort to chart a course for the restoration of economic balance, political suffrage, human’s dignity, equal rights and justice. However, the reason for the selection of this play is because its contents reflect the present global human struggles for survival in a failing and ailing economy. This work also recommends the use of plays by playwrights as an instrument of addressing political and socio-economic issues in the society.
Volume 4
Issue 1
Gloria Mayen Umukoro, Edisua Merab Yta, Lilian Onyinye Ohanyere, Agatha Egbe-John, & Veronica Ebi Odey
In traditional African societies, children were seen as a resource to the family and the community at large. This made the process of child upbringing and socialization an important traditional African value owed to children by parents and the community. However, new cultures and socioeconomic changes have destroyed values placed on upbringing of the African child leading to child abandonment and abuse resulting in large number of street children in Africa and the bias and prejudice they suffer. The general objective of this study is to examine why people are unwilling to help street children and to show how critical thinking can help reduce bias and prejudice against them. Contact hypothesis using carnival is used to boost togetherness, encourage teamwork, reduce prejudice and bias against street children and restructure people’s thinking towards them.
Abiona, Lawrence Adekunle.
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global search for solution revealed the poverty of critical thinking in Nigeria and the problem of neo-colonialism as a clog in the wheel of the development and promotion of African Traditional Medicine (ATM) as an alternative remedy for the pandemic. The study examined how neo-colonialism hampered the development of ATM and it projected its future in Nigeria. Gathering data from unstructured interview, observation, and secondary sources, the paper adopted the historical and descriptive approaches. Findings revealed that neo-colonialism created a psychological hatred for ATM in the mind of some Nigerians notwithstanding that some Nigerians irrespective of religious affiliation were patronising traditional medical practitioners. It was discovered that President Muhammadu Buhari was Eurocentric rather than Afro-centric in the search for the solution to the pandemic. Madagascar tried its Covid Organics; rather than such scientific effort being supported and improved upon, it was condemned. Although NAFDAC had reportedly approved the production of ABUAD Herbal Virucidine Liquid as an immune booster and antioxidant for Coronavirus and other viral infections, ATM needs more investments from Nigerian government because it has many prospects in Nigeria. The study concluded that Africans needed to put an end to self-hate and embrace their heritage in order to contribute to global goods and services.
Uhere, Christopher Ike & Uche Farouk Agha.
The first quarter of the year 2020 saw Nigeria grappling with covid-19, a deadly virus that broke out in the Wuhan city of China during the last quarter of 2019. This virus spread like wild fire to almost all parts of the world and heralded shut down of national and global economies. Prior to the period when the virus got to Nigeria, some Nigerian pastors had declared that distance was not a barrier and spiritually travelled to China to destroy the corona virus but became handicapped when the virus finally got to Nigeria. This paper, on the main, focuses on Churches in Nigeria. Based on both observer and participant point of view, this paper reveals that the economic hardship caused by prevalence of the virus made the Nigerian Church leaders to engage in different sides of critical thinking in order to survive. The paper reveals further that Pastors fall within the category of those that depend on daily income for survival who constitute the worst hit by covid-19 pandemic and its attendant lockdown. Drawing from both primary and secondary sources, the paper concludes that covid-19 exposed the spiritual and economic inadequacies of Nigerian pastors whose greatest problem during the covid-19 lockdown just like every other group was hunger, and adopted different strategies to survive as ban was placed on religious gathering.
MSC Okolo & Hilary Anayochukwu Eke
The COVID-19 (and its variants) and the various measures put in place to contain its spread has introduced a new attitude in the way people interact with each other and relate to the world. On one hand, established values and norms are being unpacked and transformed. Ordinary expressions such as hugging, handshake are being replaced with social distancing, face masks and digital communication. On the other hand, confusion and contradictions have followed its emergence. Even though medical experts have been able to account for its spread, no satisfactory explanation has been given for its actual cause, the effectiveness of the many vaccines so far produced for its cure, and whether humanity will ever be free of its scourge. These separately and together are causing a lot of fear and anxiety especially in Africa due to her reliance on the West for both interpretation of the virus and its vaccine. How best can Africa meet the challenge imposed by COVID-19? How can she confront her fears and even use this as an opportunity to reposition itself in the global community and push for a better arrangement in world affairs? What measures should Africa take to manage the many contradictions trailing the pandemic? How can Africa harness her resources to join in the search for an effective cure for the virus? How can African countries forge a common solidarity that will enable their voices to count in matters of global concern? To resolve these issues among others, the study employs critical thinking as the analytic tool. Critical thinking involves subjecting ideas and experiences to impartial and rational assessment so as to distil from them the right response that fits a particular situation and apply it to that situation. In employing critical thinking to investigate an issue of serious existential concern, the study makes a case for the continued relevance of philosophy in contributing to the resolution of practical matters that affect humanity.
Samuel Olabode Ajibiye, Ph.D.
The present study is an analysis of attitude signification in selected SMS discourses on COVID19 by the NCDC, with the aim of revealing how language resources are deployed for the construal of attitudes and stances. The study adopted a participant-observation method of data collection. Data were collected from the mobile phones of research participants. Data collection period spanned from July to December, 2020 – the period in which the Federal Government relaxed the protracted nationwide lockdowns in Nigeria. Only coronavirusrelated SMS discourses were purposively collected from research participants. Twenty (20) unsolicited SMS were thus purposively selected for the present study. This study is undergirded by the attitude system of Appraisal theory to unpack government’s stance towards the COVID19 pandemic in Nigeria. From the data analysis, it is discovered that affect resources and judgement resources frequent preponderantly. The text-messages sent by the NCDC are strategically constructed using prominently negative affect resources and negative judgement resources, and surprisingly, there is no evidence of appreciation resources in the data. It is therefore argued that the explicit deployment of negative language resources is intended to foreground a sense of insecurity regarding public health matters during COVID-19, and the need for Nigerians to comply with the recommended non-pharmaceutical interventions against the deadly viral infection. The paper therefore concludes that the tactful deployment of language in the SMSs by the NCDC foregrounds that the Nigerian governments seek continuing cooperation and sustained solidarity, believing that, with such ‘attitude’, the current difficulties posed by the ravaging pandemic can be overcome.
Okoroafor Philomena Ayenoya
The sudden outbreak of the corona virus in the early 2020 led to the declaration of an emergency in the health sector worldwide. It paralyzed the economic, social, educational and religious activities. The origin was traced to Wuhan in China and gradually spreads its tentacles to the entire world; not exempting race or class. The nature of the virus rages like wild fire in dry bush. Research shows that it attacks the human lungs and entire respiratory system. It has also been shown that the survival rate is low, especially in the western part of the world, but the African /blacks have not recorded the death rate as compared to their white counterparts.
According to Pramath Kakodka (2020), there are many parameters of the clinical and management of the Covid-19 that need optimization. He explained that a hindrance to this development is the vast amount of misinformation.
This paper sets out to discuss the role of the Covid-19 Pandemic in the Nigerian traditional values amidst absurd reality. This is achieved using the absurdist theoretical frame work. The theory as propounded by Albert Camus (1913 -1960) expresses what happens when human existence lacks meaning or purpose, and there is a communication breakdown. The paper also articulates a ‘disconnect’ of the African man from his traditional values vis-a-vis the danger inherent. The result shows that the futuristic implication is a continuous degradation /deterioration of African traditional values and morals.
It is pertinent therefore to have a reconsideration of strategies to redeem the African traditional values and morals by incorporating such into curriculum of both lower and higher schools.