Kaduna State Governor Seeks Revival of Reading Culture, Creative Thinking

Gov. Uba Sani of Kaduna State has urged leaders at all levels to take the lead in reviving the reading culture to foster creativity and accelerate national development.

He made the call on Saturday at the unveiling of Content, a literary arts initiative designed to provide a nurturing space for young creatives in Abuja.

The event also featured the unveiling of two books entitled “Context and Understanding” and “Small Worlds, Golden Words” authored by Mr Mohammed Bello.

The governor was represented by his Principal Secretary. Prof. Bello Ayuba.

Sani challenged writers to redouble their efforts in reviving deep thinking through creative works.

The governor said writers, both young and old, should redouble their efforts in inspiring the nation to revive our reading culture.

“The lack of this culture is unfortunately evident in the absence of deep thinking and informed analysis, which we often observe in national discourse and among graduates of our higher institutions.

“We in leadership positions at all levels must see this as a challenge; we must not hesitate to encourage efforts such as this in whatever way we can.

“That way, we would rejuvenate interest in learning in and out of the school system for the good of the society,” he said.

In his remarks, literary icon and Nobel Laureate. Prof. Wole Soyinka,  urged would-be creators to seek contents that expressed wisdom.

According to him, ‘inspiration is everywhere it is not mysterious but simply about opening your mind to what others overlook’

On his part, Bello, the author and initiator of CreaTent noted that many parents of artistically gifted children often failed to recognize their child’s creativity and the unique attention it required

He said, ” Spike Lee, the award-winning American Film Director, said “parents kill more dreams than anybody.”

 According to him, parents do not kill dreams because they want to, but in their effort to secure the “best” for the child, they kill dreams.

“As a response to this accidental dream assassination, CreaTent is determined to save more children from the cold ashes of convention and decay.

“Moreover, it has been attributed to the award-winning novelist, Ursula K. Leguin that “the creative adult is the child that survived.

“At CreaTent, we want to see creative children thrive,” he said.

NAN