Headlines

IDAN laments lack of originality in African architecture, interior designs

Eyewitness reporter

The Interior Designers Association of Nigeria (IDAN) has described the Nigerian Architectural and interior design status as lacking cultural and historical essences.

This was made known at a just-concluded event to mark the World Interiors Day (WID) celebration.

According to IDAN, the Nigerian architectural pieces are devoid of colonial references and have little cultural and artistic value attached.

The group lamented that the country is not presenting it past particularly well.

In a round table discussion organised to address salient issues affecting the nation, one of the panelists, Miss Kaine Amachree started noted:
“I have been saying this for a long time. I am not seeing enough of our cultural references in our architecture and in our interiors.

” I am not talking about putting vintage antics on display.

“Most of the Nigerian architecture has no colonial references, it has very little culture except if you go to Kano or to the homes of the Obas or the Ooni’s and the kings, that’s where they keep all the beautiful African-based architectural habitat.”

Amachree cited that African countries such as Mali, and South Africa have retained their histories in their architectural pieces saying:

“You talk about a man like Francis Kere of Mali, you talk about the past.
“We took a lot from the South African Cape.

“We took a lot from our colonial masters. The houses were designed for cross ventilation.

” So you have big windows on this side and on that side. You don’t have that problem anymore.”

The interior design expert described the focus of colonial architecture saying:
“The rooms were made for the purpose.

“The person was there for a purpose for a period of time.

“So in a big colonial house, you had 2 big bedrooms, beautiful wooden floors; you had the cool air coming from cross ventilation, you had high ceilings, the windows were plumbed 90 degrees all over.

“You had wooden beams that are fabulously seamed and beautiful to look at.

“You have staircases that are created out of solid timber that doesn’t split or warp in any way.”

The business mogul lent her experience to the audience saying, “(There is ) no casting back to our influence from the colonials. We are not casting back to the symbolism of how we lived, the materials that we used- mud, grass, straw, ground shells, rocks and they were used for a reason.

“We have lost that part of our history.

“We don’t have an unusual design, we don’t have anything very, very original.

“We tend to copy and the internet has really permitted that.”

Amachree, who has over 25 years of experience in interior design and architectural drawing, went on to admonish the stakeholders
” I don’t want to see another Corinthian design or capital, I want to see something that is more African.”

She lamented the dearth of traditional skills.

“We are losing artisanal skills, we need to bring back the artisans from Edo state, I used to get carvers from there.

“We are losing weavers even those Hausa guys that used to do the hats. We are losing all those skills to importation.”

Miss Amachree revealed that sometimes she talks to young architects and say, “Why are you acting funny, why don’t you introduce this (African design) to your clients?”

The architects would respond, ‘The clients they don’t want this, they want Dubai,’ and according to her ,she would respond:
“Dubai is marble, Disney comics, Batman! They have created their own style.

” We don’t have anything amazing, original and very artistic”

In her closing remarks, the BOT member challenged Nigeria emphatically stressing:
“Why (is it) in America, we have the Design and Decorations (D&D) building, Architecture and Design (AD) building.

In London, they have the Chelsea Harbor Design?

“I want to see the day that we have our own design center that caters to not just interior design, interior African decorations to specialized interior finishes; where we have our own museum, auditorium, where we can have masterclasses and symposium for young students, where there are books, photographs. I will my entire library to that!”

World Interiors Day is one set aside by the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers to celebrate the industry.

This year’s theme, “Pride of the Past, an incentive for the future”, celebrates innovation and a future-forward look at the profession, while honouring the past and learning from its experiences.

The immediate past President of IFI and Founder of IDAN, Dr. Titi Ogufere said, “I thought that topic was important and for me, I always say if you don’t know your past you don’t know where you are going, you don’t know your future and that’s one of the issues we’ve had in Africa where we have actually been robbed of even knowing history, knowing where we are coming from, knowing who we are, our identity and that is so important.”

Headlines

Lagos princess congratulates Tinubu, Sanwo-Olu

… tasks them on development of maritime economy

The eyewitness reporter

The President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Olushola Sanwo-Olu have been tasked with paying attention to the maritime economy for its development for the overall benefit of Nigeria and her citizenry.

Giving the task with congratulatory messages, a Lagos princess, Princess Ronke Kosoko, noted that developing the maritime economy would instigate the economic development of the nation.

Princess Kosoko who is the CEO of Employment Clinic and Coordinator, Project One Million Jobs,

congratulated Asiwaju Tinubu and Governor Sanwo-Olu on their well-deserved victories at the polls.

She was confident that the Nigerian maritime economy will gain immensely from the Tinubu administration even as she enjoined the President-elect to focus on the industry.

Kosoko noted that skilled maritime personnel is aging and there is a need to transfer their wealth of experience to the younger generation who needs to be prepared to take over from the retiring generation.

She disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Transportation had approved the request for Project One Million Jobs to interface with agencies under the ministry for a seamless flow of talks and synergy that will positively impact and lead to a new frontier in the industry.

Ronke Kosoko unveiled her pet project, Maritime Conversion Programme (MCP), which she explained was designed to introduce Nigerian graduates to the maritime sector and improve career prospects.

Kosoko said that the MCP, which has gotten the backing of the government, would give support and connect not less than 5000 Nigerian graduates with the right employers in the industry who can engage them in non-technical aspects of shipping.

She noted that women will be given an adequate percentage under MCP, stating that the MCP is not creating jobs but providing a fertile ground for the transfer of knowledge from old Nigerians in the industry to young ones.

Headlines

Ekweremadu, wife may go to jail as London court finds them guilty of organ tafficking

Ike Ekweremadu; his wife, Beatrice;

The Eyewitness reporter with agency report

A former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; his wife Beatrice; and their doctor, Obinna Obeta have been found guilty of organ trafficking in the first verdict of its kind under the Modern Slavery Act.

Ekweremadu, 60; his wife, Beatrice, 56; and Obeta, 51; were found guilty of facilitating the travel of a young man to Britain with a view to his exploitation after a six-week trial at the Old Bailey.

They allegedly criminally conspired to bring the 21-year-old Lagos street trader to London to exploit him for his kidney, the jury found, according to UK Guardian.

Ekweremadu and his wife were charged in the United Kingdom after they allegedly lured a young man from Nigeria to harvest his organ for their ailing daughter, Sonia.
The lawmaker was last year arrested and had been in the custody of UK authorities after they received complaints from the young man about their alleged plans to harvest his organ.

The prosecutor, Hugh Davies KC, told the court on Thursday the Ekweremadus and Obeta had treated the man and other potential donors as “disposable assets – spare parts for reward”.

He said they entered an “emotionally cold commercial transaction” with the man.

The behaviour of Ekweremadu, a successful lawyer and founder of an anti-poverty charity who helped draw up Nigeria’s laws against organ trafficking, showed “entitlement, dishonesty and hypocrisy”, Davies told the jury.

He said Ekweremadu, who owns several properties and had a staff of 80, “agreed to reward someone for a kidney for his daughter – somebody in circumstances of poverty and from whom he distanced himself and made no inquiries, and with whom, for his own political protection, he wanted no direct contact”.

Davies added, “What he agreed to do was not simply expedient in the clinical interests of his daughter, Sonia, it was exploitation, it was criminal.

“It is no defence to say he acted out of love for his daughter. Her clinical needs cannot come at the expense of the exploitation of somebody in poverty.”

Ekweremadu, who denied the charge, told the court he was the victim of a scam.

Obeta, who also denied the charge, claimed the man was not offered a reward for his kidney and was acting altruistically.

Beatrice denied any knowledge of the alleged conspiracy. Sonia did not give evidence.

The judge, Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson, will pass sentence at a later date.

Headlines

EFCC arraigns bank manager, two others for N55m fraud in Makurdi

Owolola Adebola

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC,) on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, arraigned one Kichime Gomwalk, a branch manager of First City Monument Bank, (FCMB,) Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited before Justice P. S. Gang of the Plateau State High Court Jos, on a five-count charge bordering on stealing, cheating and obtaining by false pretense to the tune of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) fraud.

Kichime Gomwalk, while serving as branch Manager, FCMB Plc, Murtala Mohammed Way Jos, in Plateau State is alleged to have forged COCIN GRATUITY CERTIFICATE OF PLEDGE/LETTER OF SET-OFF dated 30th DECEMBER, 2019, purportedly co-signed by Mrs. Monica Bitrus Tang and Rev (Dr.) Amos Musa Mohzo, Directors, which he used to secure an overdraft facility from FCMB Plc to the tune of N55, 000.000.00 (Fifty-Five Million Naira) with COCIN Gratuity account N0. 100GOMWALK379 domiciled with FCMB Plc

Count one of the charges reads, “That you, Kichime Gomwalk, Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and you Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited, sometime in December 2019 at Jos, in Plateau State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court did conspire among yourselves to commit an unlawful act to with without Lawful authority engaged in the acquisition of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) overdraft credit facility from FCMB Plc and thereby committed an offense of conspiracy contrary to section 59 (1) of the Plateau State Penal Code Law, (20017) and punishable under Section 59 (2) of the same Law”.

Count two reads, “That you, Kichime Gomwalk, Michael Damkas Buayam of Tan Global Energy Limited, and you Abbas Andrew Dayilim of Castlegate International Limited, sometime in December 2019 in Plateau State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court fraudulently used LETTER OF CONSENT to engage in the acquisition of N55,000.000.00 (Fifty Five Million Naira) overdraft credit facility from FCMB Plc knowing that at the time of acquisition of the said money, it was derived from the unlawful activity and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18 (a) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment Act) 2004, and Punishable under section 18 (2) of the same Act”.

The defendants pleaded ‘not guilty’ when the charge was read to them.

The prosecution counsel, Uwaise Yusuf urged the court to remand the defendants and fix a date for trial.

The judge adjourned the case till May 18, 2023, and ordered the remand of the defendants at the Jos Correctional Center pending the hearing of their bail applications.