Cover, Edition 173, February 22-28, 2009

For ‘small London’...na flower we go chop?

BY AYODELE ARIGBABU
One lingering memory of Lagos is that of a market woman in a bus on Oshodi bridge, looking upon the stretch of land below, where a section of the market had been demolished by government. She sighed and intoned: “Now they will come and plant flowers here” — her sympathies obviously with the traders whose livelihoods had been destroyed by the Urban renewal drive.
Urban Renewal is never an easy task and should not be about whether landscaping / beauty and the therapeutic benefits / tourism it brings to residents and visitors alike is more important than the livelihood of the inhabitants who will be displaced or otherwise adversely affected by the change or vice-versa... Urban Renewal should be about mutual trade-offs and the good of all, which with deep soul searching, is not so impossible.

THAT was last year, five months before the bulldozers moved into Oshodi and proved once and for all that no matter how long we might have lived like barbarians, sanity can still overcome our basest instincts to perpetuate mindless clutter and congestion of a major transport artery in an all important city.
Just this year, I was on another bus (okay, the design sleuth does the bus hopping thing, but let’s assume for the purpose of this discussion that I leave the Maybach parked at home occasionally in the cause of my anthropological studies of the designscape) and heard a passenger from upfront exclaim animatedly — “Eh-ehn... is this Oyingbo? Lagos don dey become small London o!” Another citizen made a similar statement on National Television just a couple of weeks after.
Lagos? Small London? As much as their euphoria for the improving face of Lagos might be appreciated, their depiction of one of the foremost urban centers in Africa as a city aspiring towards ‘Londonness’ (is it not that small ‘town’ in the UK that they’re all referring to with froth in their mouths?) is irritating to say the least because there-in lies the problem. Lagos should be a city that London should aspire towards! Okay, that’s mind numbing right? But we Nigerians, we’ve been so used to sub-human standards that when presented with slight improvements, we assume we’ve attained nirvana. If our imagination was alive and well, we would know that the current efforts can only be the beginning, we would know that there is still a long way to go in building this city into a world class urban center, we would not be asking “Na flower we go chop?” like brainless beasts who must ‘chop’ everything, including our own dignity as a people.
I’m seeing some parts of Lagos as if for the first time despite having plodded through those same streets for the past several years. Illegal sheds, stalls, awnings and other mindless assemblages that once defaced building and made their finer character indiscernible are being stripped off with unprecedented alacrity. Even shop owners, the perpetrators of all that clutter have got the message, they are curtailing their own excesses in an unprecedented wave of public compliance to government directives and all of a sudden, old dusty decrepit buildings are wearing new coats of paint.
You look around and feel lost, the buildings are breathing, they communicate their contribution to the streetscape a lot better, you don’t feel so hot under the collar anymore just walking down the street, because your eyes are not assaulted to the same degree to which they were previously, but you are not thinking ‘small London’, you’re thinking ‘new Lagos’.

You read a quote ascribed to Dr. Samuel Johnson, London’s foremost dramatist of the 19th century and feel envious, what are they feeling like, that quote should have been directed at Lagos: “You find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.” This quote, adapted to Lagos should explain to the governor why many of us are not going to leave this town, sorry your work is not going to get any easier with a sudden drop in population, this is where we must rock and die, and we’d better make it work together.
But this ‘small London’ thing is so very annoying, what is it about London sef?” So what if the city has survived a revolution, a great plague (that extinguished 100,000 souls), a great fire (that razed 80 percent of the city); all in quick succession in the 17th century, yet grew in population to become the world’s largest city by 1914. The world wars, particularly the blitz of German air bombings between 1940 and 1941 that claimed 30,000 lives and 130,000 houses, social unrest in the 1980s and more recent terrorist attacks –– especially that of July 2005, which coincided with the announcement of London as host city for the 2012 Olympics –– and the current global financial meltdown have not been sufficient catastrophes to steal the swagger from the flagship city of ‘cool Britannia’.
Reading former Mayor of London –– Ken Livingstone reel out the city’s plans for using the opportunity of their hosting of the 2012 summer Olympics to upgrade the city’s infrastructure and engage the east end in some serious urban rejuvenation in the October 2008 edition of the Cityscape magazine, one starts to feel heightened pangs of jealousy. Can ‘Fash’ have enough time to help us catch up with the rest of the world once and for all and stop these ‘small London’ jibes decidedly?
Sure Lagos had its share of ‘bombardment’ from British gunships at the tail end of the 19th century to encourage the Oba of Lagos to cede control to the Queen of England, however, that’s child’s play in comparison to the Blitz... Lagos even remained completely untouched throughout the civil war! “So what is our problem? A lack of imagination I dare say, we are yet unable to imagine ourselves deserving of well maintained public parks, public transportation networks, intelligent retail systems, dignifying and attractive mass housing schemes; and as long as we lack that imagination, no matter the government’s best efforts, we will keep whining about how we can’t feed on the flowers they are planting and why their attempts to de-clutter and properly organize our streetscapes and informal retail systems are anti-poor people in a shameless glamorization of poverty like blind adherents to a primitive and outdated religion”.
It will be interesting to see London one day and say without cynicism, “Ah-ahn, London don dey become small Lagos o!” It may sound like wishful thinking at the moment, but that has always been the bedrock of remarkable development in every sphere of civilization, a healthy doze of imagination.
London facts courtesy 2008 Encarta
dreamarts.designagency@gmail.com, www.designpages.blogspot.com

PHOTOS:PAUL OLOKO

Switch On the Naija Craze

BY TOPE TEMPLER OLAIYA
SOLA Kuti is a silent, smooth operator who is crazy about anything Naija, and he doesn’t deny this. “People accuse me of always being behind the scene, I disagree less with them because I am cool with that and it makes me put in more into my work, which speaks for me.”
He modestly refers to himself as the Creative Director of Switched On, but Sola is more than that, as an apostle of the true Naija identity, Switched On and its other stables like Be Wise, Naijatalk, Howfar, and Reload, all starts and ends with him.
The Switched On brand launched two years ago focuses on the Nigerian youth market, their dreams, fears, aspirations and common youth trends internationally. It is not only targeting the youth but also documenting their thoughts and breaking the conventional barriers associated with a wider audience. Gradually becoming one of the voices for Naija’s youth, Switched On continues to be a medium to share and exchange ideas, learn from their peers and the older generation, but is not stopping at that, the brand has a vision to accurately capture the youth market; a market which Sola has tagged Generation N. “This is because we understand and embrace the plight of a new generation of Nigerians who aren’t afraid to ask why and take destiny by its horns.”
The first print edition of Switched On, launched in 2006 and edited by Zahra Mohammed, was tagged the ‘condom in my wallet’ issue, which is essentially about letting young people stay alive by preaching the C of the ABC on HIV/AIDS. While noting that there is so much double standard in the fight against HIV/AIDS by concentrating on abstinence as the way out, Sola informs that the society tends to ignore and often times, neglect the most important factor, particularly among the youths, which is aggressively campaigning on the use of condoms and safe sex.
“This is one of the double standards we want to correct. We can’t afford to close our eyes to the fact that young people are sexually active, while we rant on about abstinence. We must talk to them not the way the older generation will talk to the youth, so they can open up and share their innermost feelings. That is exactly what Switched On is all about, creating the platform, where young people can identify with other young people and really get to address the needs of the Generation Next.
“There was one of our readers who called me one day and said, ‘my girlfriend is pregnant and I am coming to the office to see you.’ I said fine, you could come around. Eight hours later, he called me again that he has sorted it out and I asked him what happened. Sure, the answer was abortion! In eight hours, he found out the girl was pregnant, an abortion was done and she was back home. In older times, before you could think of such, you will spend about a month thinking of your life. So, with this, we want the young people to stay alive and also play safe.”
How does Switched On hope to capture the Nigerian youth space? The brand is already arresting the youth’s attention with its irresistible publications. Switching over from the print magazine to an interactive online magazine. “On September 8, 2008, the online magazine, www.switchedonnaija.com, was re-constructed and re-launched. And with this, it has given Nigerian youths in Diaspora to keep in touch with happenings back home and also an opportunity for youths all over the world who are interested in knowing more about Naija youth and what is on their minds. The website has sections from the Omonaija, Wey Dem, Talk Am, All Africa, Downloads, What’s New, Gallery, Lifestyle and the Blog. Through these sections, we bring to fore the issues and the mind of thought of the average youth. We also try to look into the lives of those who influence these youths, one way or another, either through music, art, career, photography, fashion, business, etc. Our website also tries to focus on young individuals who are trying to carve a niche and thus, make a name for themselves in whatever industry they find themselves. For representativeness, we have contributors from different parts of the country who provide us with pictures, articles, news and information about the youth in their respective areas. Furthermore, we have a section All Africa, which provides for other young Africans to tell our viewers what is on their mind and for others to know their culture and emerging youth trends in their respective countries.”
Howfar (1960 – date) is a timeline booklet, “published yearly on our progress as a nation through the eyes of the youth. This was born out of the fact that Nigeria has evolved from one decade to the other since our independence and thus, has brought about a fluctuation in the embracement of our identity as a country and people.” The booklet is given out freely to students, brand managers, multinationals, bars, clubs, partner airline operators and corporate organizations.
Reload is Switched On’s monthly e-book which delivers informal but insightful research on youth market observations. The Reload has become an avenue to further understand young people in Nigeria. It also serves as a channel for corporate brands to properly plan and sustain huge marketing budgets while attracting these sets of young Nigerians.
Switched On’s publication is its website, which aims at properly documenting and representing Naija’s youth, thereby winning credibility within their circles. Sola says the website aims at guiding young minds by breaking patterns such as double standard communication and open up partnering opportunities for institutions, groups, and organizations interested in the Nigerian Youth market. “We are interested in building a lasting relationship with our viewers; both individuals and corporate organization. We are open to discussions ranging from content, advertisement, interviews, strategic partnerships, symposiums, career talks and even campus activities.”

For Jezreel, Versatility is theme ‘09

BY OYINDAMOLA LAWAL
FOR many fashion designers, the road to the top comes by chance, but to a talented few, steadfastness and focus have been the tonic.
The United Kingdom-based Abiola Egbeyemi is one of the few designers, who have made great strides in the international fashion scene through steadfastness and determination.
For the proprietress of Jezreel Designs, her journey into the fashion industry came as a surprise. She says, “my foray into the industry is one that has taken many, including myself, by surprise. Growing up as the only girl in a family of four children; I was a real Tomboy. I spent many hours playing football and climbing trees like a boy. Most of the time, I wore my brothers’ clothes with my mum trying her best to make me dress as a girl. About four years ago, I fell in love with ankara and aso-oke and started thinking of versatile ways they can be worn. The idea for the accessories grew from there until I made my first item in my living room floor in 2007.”
The lady, who holds a degree in Law and Economics from the University of Hertfordshire and MSc in International Business Economics from City University, infuses contemporary designs into the traditional African fabrics thereby making a statement that lifts her above the crowd.
She says, “as a Christian, I am also inspired daily by my walk with God.”

APART from making unique outfits, Jezreel is also known for classy African and trendy accessories. She adds, “having made the first bag, and seeing how it was received by those who saw it, I started thinking of ways to make it into a viable business with a difference. I wanted to combine my love for our traditional fabrics with my passion for my country and culture while trying to give back to the society; with that idea I started Jezreel Designs. I wanted to show the rest of the world the richness of African fabrics as well as our craftsmanship. I wanted to combine these with great designs that can be worn at any occasion.”
She is not only a proud Nigerian, she also showcases this in her products, especially African gifts.
“Often times, we as a people are very quick to dismiss products made locally as inferior to those made abroad. I want people to see the quality of the products in terms of components and workmanship and say, ‘Wow! Was this really made in Nigeria?’ I also hope to help the craftsmen that work with me to realize that the only difference between products made in Nigeria and those in Europe and the rest of the world is purely the name on the label,” she says.
No detail is overlooked in Egbeyemi’s designs. She discloses, “each Jezreel Designs item is hand crafted by the very best craftsmen, we can find right here in Nigeria. We are fusing the ‘everyday’ fabric of ankara with leather to create pieces that are both beautiful and timeless. All our items are also produced in limited numbers, not more than 10 per design per fabric, to satisfy our clients.”
Egbeyemi sources all her fabrics and components including zips, button among others in Nigeria, most especially Lagos Island, Oshodi or Mushin. She says, “for me, that is probably the most exciting time in the development of a new collection as it allows me to meet and make friends with so many wonderful people.”
On what kind of fabrics she uses, the lady behind Jezreel says, “currently, we use only ankara and leather for the ready- to-wear items. Aso-Oke, being individualised and currently only used for bespoke items. However, as I get to know more about other cultures in Nigeria, we will start introducing different traditional fabrics with each new collection.”
Over the years, she has been able to combine beauty and fashion designing, “Beauty, they say, is in the eye of the beholder. In as much as this sounds cliché, I really do believe it to be true. I believe you don’t have to look or dress in a certain way to be considered beautiful because beauty comes from within,” she states.
For the designer, “fashion is whatever makes you feel good and represents your true self.

ON her 2009 Collection, she explains, “we will be going for strong and attractive colours, which will complement any woman’s wardrobe while still making a statement. The theme for 2009 is versatility; so, we will be producing clutch bags, which can be dressed up or down depending on the occasion as well as totes and shoppers for the everyday woman. Our belts can be worn on casual jeans, smart trousers or dresses; the point is for you to, create your own style. For me the importance will be given, as always, to the quality of the materials used in making the accessories; bags and belts need to be comfortable and practical but should also be made with high quality leather.”
The name Jezreel, Egbeyemi states, came to me by the inspiration of God from the book of Hosea 1 vs.11, which means God’s plants. The idea of the accessories label comes from the traditional handmade fabrics in Africa, whose concept is from God.
She adds, “the uniqueness of Jezreel Designs comes from the fact that it is pure and simply an African business, using African fabrics and craftsmen, creating pieces that can be worn by everyone the world over.”
For Egbeyemi, her role model is her mum. “ She has a ‘If you don’t ask, you don’t get’ philosophy which basically means, how do you know unless you try?”
In the nearest future, Egbeyemi projects, “Nigeria, and Africa as a whole, will begin to takes its rightful place on the world stage.”

From the child of yesteryears…

BY GBENGA SALAU
AT age three, she made her first musical appearance. At six, she recorded an album. At seven, she released her first album. Many wondered where she was coming from, and how she was able to do all this. She was a tagged phenomenon because she did what was not ordinary for her age. Her songs were for the tender hearted, for and about children. She traversed the length and breath of Nigeria, singing in order to raise fund for children, who were abandoned and in motherless homes. All of a sudden, she went out of circulation and there were different rumours; one of which was that she was dead. She came out to debunk the ugly rumour, however. And in no time, she launched a foundation. Tosin Jegede Foundation. That is the story of Tosin Jedege, the brilliant artiste and author, whose concern is catering the less privileged children in Africa.
What motivated her to sing at an early age?
“My dad had a band, I started with them, I used to go out with the band when I was one, perhaps, two years or thereabout… you know there was nobody in the house, no baby sitter, everybody worked together on the stage. I still remember, one day, the group went to the University of Lagos to perform. I sat down and was waiting for the performance to end,; before it finally did, the person that was with me had left and I said ‘let me go out to visit my friends.’ I actually went on stage, met my friends there and took the microphone from one of the people that was singing, and sang the lead and the people could hear my voice singing the lead. My dad was about to take the microphone from me, when people said, ‘let her sing, let her sing’, that was the first time my friends noticed that I had stage carriage,” she says.
“I remember singing very well that day. I was only three then. After that, I followed my dad to visit the motherless babies’ home in Isolo, where I saw children that had no mummies, no daddies; and asked where their parents were. I was told that they were abandoned at birth. So, I felt like doing something that will make them happy, I should sing for them to make them happy, and that, basically, was where I started active singing, and the song was written for me, which happens to be the first performance that I did,” Tosin quips.
“After that, people were saying, why did you not go to record, and I did the first record, which had Orireremi, Let there be love and Cheer up; there were quite a few songs that were unpopular. My songs were to make children happy, to make people happy, and to inculcate good behaviour; and I think I was a bit successful doing that. At the same time, from the money, I was able to do concert and raise money for the less privileged, which I did throughout my musical career.”
She says, “initially, it was SOS, then came motherless babies and abandoned children all over Nigeria from Sotoko to Lagos, Calabar Kano and Kaduna, I covered many states in Nigeria while trying to raise money for them.”

TO actualise her dreams for the upliftment of the less privileged children in Africa , Tosin, in 1998, set up the Tosin Jegede Foundation (TJF), a non-governmental, non-political, non-profit making organisation, with the objectives being, to cater for the less privileged children and motherless babies homes; support education; award scholarships to the less privileged children in primary, secondary and institutions of higher learning; discover young poor talents and encourage them; campaign against ills among children and youth in general; campaign against all forms of child abuse, hawking, early marriage, campaign against Vesico Vaginal Fistulae (VVF); mobilise necessary resources to support the less privileged children, among others.
“Really, without God, I do not think I would have got to the level I am now. Thinking about it, as the first child to actually be involved in such a project in Nigeria, I got support from my teachers, headmistress, my fans and my parents right from the first day.
“I think it was really God, looking back, and my destiny. At that young age, I was in the right place with the right people despite some negative comments I got along the line.”
She adds, “in 10 years time, I will not be in music any more, but will be using my Foundation to raise fund for motherless and indigent children. I think it is just destiny; that is just the only way I can look at it.”
So, who is Tosin Jegede?
“She is a very creative person. As you said, there is music, painting, and writing. Which are all part of creativity; I am just a creative person that is why I like doing things that I will express myself. That is me.”
Of these creative parts, which one does she prefer most?
“Every one of it. I think I have enjoyed every process, too. Music, though it was when I was really young, I really enjoyed the process, because I had my friends around me and we were singing together. I really enjoyed the whole package. Then I do my painting and my beadwork, I also enjoyed them,” she says.
On her growing up, she reveals, “my nursery school was a normal one, and my primary school was at Central Bank of Nigeria Primary school, where I started singing and performing at functions. I was still very young when I went out in the daytime or at weekends to Abuja, Calabar or somewhere to perform. On Mondays, I would come to class as if nothing had happened. If everybody is being flogged for disturbance in the class, the same punishment is extended to me; no difference. I did not get any special treatment.”
She adds, “in secondary school, the same thing happened; you meet people that you like and those that you do not like; so, I had normal growing up. I think another thing that really helped when I was growing up was that I had a steady church, and the people that I grew up with, we are still friends.”

LAST week, there was a public presentation of a book she wrote on Cardinal Okogie.
What motivated the book?
She says, “I have watched him overtime commenting on issues. I have always been interested in his outspoken nature, even as a priest. He is really interested in the well being of the people. Secondly, when I was going through the letters of support he gave me, I felt there was need to write about this man.”
In her book, as a young child, she told the Cardinal that she liked to be a medical doctor, but today, she is a graduate of Business Decision Analysis.
What changed that process or what went wrong?
“No, nothing went wrong oh, you know, I had other things after medicine. There was medicine, there was a time I wanted to be a pilot, then a footballer, that did not last long, then a race car driver, I really wanted to race cars, I wanted to represent Nigeria. There were different professions like catering… I really experimented but I think what I really had passion for was engineering, maybe because my dad was an engineer. I also liked the idea of being in government as well; there were economic, politics, and ambassador. Yes oh, medicine was just a phase, quite a few career choices that I thought I wanted to make.”
You also said you wanted to be a footballer, which you stated was the shortest ambition you had, what made you think of being a footballer and why did you back out?
“I used to enjoy playing football when I was really young, playing with my brothers, cousins–– all of us play football; and I was a very good dribbler. Then, I thought, it was good to be one, but when I saw the much training they engaged in, I was scared away… Wake up early in the morning to be jogging up and down. I prefered something that would involve my brain, also my heart. I think why I read Business Decision Analysis is that I could be anywhere, and in any organisation. And I have been looking forward to working for myself, and work for charity, and I felt it will be good taking up that into what I want to do, that balances everything.”
With the fame, and all the attractions, did you not feel arrogant among your mates?
“I would have always felt I never did, because I never felt I did. I think, thinking about it, I go away, I come back, I just felt nothing special, the friends that are my friends are the same people, and they do not feel anything negative.

ON her painting, she says, “I developed the art when I was really very young, from cradle like most children did. I discovered that I really, really enjoyed painting than when I was much younger. I am not so great at drawing, when you give me something to paint with different colours, I can make beautiful work. It is something I really enjoy doing.”
On the Foundation, Tosin Jegede Foundation, she reveals, “it all started when I was singing to cheer up children. When I was going around the country raising money for the less privileged children and motherless babies, I noticed that there were children that were at home with their parents but because of one circumstance or the other they could not afford to have basic things, compared to other children in the same area.”
“These children need help and encouragement and as a growing country we cannot ignore. So, it is something I had always had a passion for, not only to make them smile but do something to enrich their life. The foundation definitely almost became natural. The focus is about the education of children; it is more about the quality of education that they get, the affordability of it.
“In Nigeria and in many countries, they look at education that you have to be in the classroom, you have to get a degree, diploma, and master. And I know that there are many people in life that did not go to school but are affecting people’s life. I also really believed in vocational training, whether they are going to be carpenters, painter, and all sorts of profession that do really require formal education. I believe in education as a whole.
“The immediate things will be more of scholarship but I think as I go along, I will be looking at how to get better, and looking at other areas.”