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In a May 2020 interview, Nobel laureate [[Wole Soyinka]] disclosed that some "wannabe Christian Ayatollahs" demonstrated over Nwelue's novel ''A Country of Extraordinary Ghosts'', carrying placards that read: "Death to Nwelue".<ref>{{cite web|title=Interview Wole Soyinka 2020|url=https://www.projekt-cassandra.net/Project-Cassandra-English/Project-Cassandra-News/Project-Cassandra-Contributions/Interview-Wole-Soyinka-2020/|access-date=2021-06-02|website=www.projekt-cassandra.net|language=en-US}}</ref>
In a May 2020 interview, Nobel laureate [[Wole Soyinka]] disclosed that some "wannabe Christian Ayatollahs" demonstrated over Nwelue's novel ''A Country of Extraordinary Ghosts'', carrying placards that read: "Death to Nwelue".<ref>{{cite web|title=Interview Wole Soyinka 2020|url=https://www.projekt-cassandra.net/Project-Cassandra-English/Project-Cassandra-News/Project-Cassandra-Contributions/Interview-Wole-Soyinka-2020/|access-date=2021-06-02|website=www.projekt-cassandra.net|language=en-US}}</ref>


Having been an academic visitor at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford in 2021/22, a probe into Nwelue's conduct was launched after Oxford students reported he had charged £20 for attendance at a book launch in January 2023. When it was discovered that Nwelue had claimed to be a "professor" at Oxford and Cambridge on social media, a claim Nwelue denies, his visitorship was cancelled.<ref name="Telegraph 3-3-23" /> The reason given was "persistent unacceptable breaches of its terms". The fellowship itself, named after [[James Currey]] was later reported to have been set up to benefit Nwelue's financial associates.<ref>{{Cite web |last=News |first=Cherwell |date=2023-03-15 |title=Dismissed academic visitor ran unofficial “Oxbridge fellowship” scheme for financial associates |url=https://cherwell.org/2023/03/15/james-currey-fellowship/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=Cherwell |language=en-GB}}</ref>
Having been an academic visitor at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford in 2021/22, a probe into Nwelue's conduct was launched after Oxford students reported he had charged £20 for attendance at a book launch in January 2023. When it was discovered that Nwelue had claimed to be a "professor" at Oxford and Cambridge on social media, a claim Nwelue denies, his visitorship was cancelled.<ref name="Telegraph 3-3-23" /> The reason given was "persistent unacceptable breaches of its terms". The fellowship itself, named after [[James Currey]] was later reported to have been set up to benefit Nwelue's financial associates.<ref>{{Cite web |last=News |first=Cherwell |date=2023-03-15 |title=Dismissed academic visitor ran unofficial “Oxbridge fellowship” scheme for financial associates |url=https://cherwell.org/2023/03/15/james-currey-fellowship/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=Cherwell |language=en-GB}}</ref>. Madeleine Foote and Adrita Mitra accused Nwelue of misogyny, which he apologised for. [[Nobel Laureate]], [[Wole Soyinka]], [[Professor]] Akachi Ezeigbo, Maxim Uzoatu publicly defended Nwelue, describing him as a 'global citizen' and a respecter of women <ref>{{cite news |last1=Times |first1=Premium |title=Beyond Nwelue: An enabling environment |url=htps://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/586493-beyond-nwelue-an-enabling-environment-by-wole-soyinka |access-date=18 April 2023 |work=Wole Soyinka |agency=Premium Times |publisher=Premium Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Review |first1=Lagos |title=The Enigmatic Onyeka Nwelue |url=https://thelagosreview.ng/the-enigmatic-onyeka-nwelue-akachi-ezeigbo/ |access-date=18 April 2023 |work=Akachi Ezeigbo |agency=Thelagosreview |publisher=thelagosreview}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Newspapers |first1=GP |title=There is only one Onyeka Nwelue |url=https://globalpatriotnewss.com/there-is-only-one-onyeka-nwelue-by-uzor-maxim-uzoatu |access-date=18 April 2023 |work=Uzor Maxim |agency=GP Newspapers |publisher=globalpatriotnews}}</ref>. Nwelue emphasised that he has been an assistant professor of African literature at the University of Manipur, [[India]].



Nwelue had also been reported for social media posts stating that a poor upbringing "chains you mentally to be stupid" and that "no poor person has any value", as well as commenting "African women look like masquerades when they wear wigs and make up".<ref name="Telegraph 3-3-23" /><ref name="Cherwell News 2-3-23" />
Nwelue had also been reported for social media posts stating that a poor upbringing "chains you mentally to be stupid" and that "no poor person has any value", as well as commenting "African women look like masquerades when they wear wigs and make up".<ref name="Telegraph 3-3-23" /><ref name="Cherwell News 2-3-23" />

Revision as of 10:16, 18 April 2023

Onyeka Nwelue
Nwelue in 2011
Nwelue in 2011
BornOnyekachukwu George Nwelue
(1988-01-31) 31 January 1988 (age 36)
Ezeoke Nsu, Imo State, Nigeria
Occupation
  • Novelist
  • filmmaker
  • editor
  • poet
Period2000–present
Notable awards

Onyeka Nwelue // ⓘ (born 31 January 1988) is a Nigerian writer and filmmaker.

Early life

Nwelue's father, Chukwuemeka Samuel Nwelue (1945–2022), was a record-shop and motel owner from Ezeoke Nsu, Imo State, Nigeria who entered local politics and was appointed a chieftain and Knight of St Christopher, having formerly been a cashier and wages supervisor for construction company George Wimpey & Co. Nigeria.[1][2] His mother, Catherine[1] Ona Nwelue, taught for 35 years in public schools and is a religious scholar and social scientist.[3] His aunt, Professor Leslye Obiora, was Nigeria's former Minister of Mines and Steel.[4] Nwelue has stated that he is the great-great-grandson of Royal court adjudicator Nze Ukwu Nwelue Nnadum.[5][6]

Nwelue briefly studied sociology and anthropology at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, but did not take a degree. He subsequently studied for a diploma in scriptwriting at the Asian Academy of Film and TV, Noida.[7] He was later awarded a scholarship to study directing at the Prague Film School in the Czech Republic.[citation needed]

Nwelue left for Lagos when he was 16 years old to attend the Wole Soyinka Festival,[8] after which he was introduced to the Nobel Laureate. Soyinka remains one of Nwelue's fans: "He has read everything I have published," according to Nwelue. Soyinka has also organized private screenings of Nwelue's work.[9][10]

Career

Writing and film

Early in his career, Nwelue wrote for The Guardian in Nigeria, under Jahman Anikulapo, then-editor of The Guardian on Sunday.[11]

He is the author of, as of 2023, 22 books, twenty of which have been self-published or through his publishing company Abibiman Publishing. He produced nine books in 2021.[12]

Nwelue's second novel, The Beginning of Everything Colourful, was shortlisted for the ANA Prose Fiction Prize in 2018, and his collection of poetry, The Lagos Cuban Jazz Club, was shortlisted for ANA Poetry Prize in the same year.[13]

Nwelue adapted his novella Island of Happiness into an Igbo-language film, Agwaetiti Obiụtọ, which won Best Feature Film by a Director at the 2018 Newark International Film Festival[14] and went on to be nominated for Best First Feature Film by a Director and the Ousmane Sembene Award for Best Film in an African Language at the 2018 Africa Movie Academy Awards. Island of Happiness was inspired by true events in Oguta.[15]

Academia

Nwelue was an unpaid academic visitor at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford for the year 2021/22;[16] He founded Oxford-based James Currey Society[17] (unaffiliated with the university) and established the James Currey Fellowship in cooperation with the African Studies Centre. He is founder and director of the James Currey Literary Festival, which took place at Weston Library, University of Oxford.[18] A bust of James Currey was unveiled on 1 September 2022.[19]

Nwelue was also a Visiting Scholar to the Centre of African Studies in the University of Cambridge[20] until both of these unpaid connections were cancelled, due to a number of controversies. These included Nwelue claiming to be a "professor" at Oxford and Cambridge and using Oxford and Cambridge branding and logos to market events with permission. Moreover, students complained that Nwelue had charged £20 for signing a book written by controversial Nigerian author David Hundeyin, made negative social media comments about poor upbringings resulting in people being "stupid", stated that "no poor person has any value", as well as commenting that "African women look like masquerades when they wear wigs and make up". He also made misogynistic and sexist remarks at the talk, including saying women "slept their way to the top", "oppressed men", and that marrying women held men back in life.[21][12][22]

He was a visiting research fellow at the Center for International Studies, Ohio University.[23]

Other activities

Nwelue is the founder of La Cave Musik, a record label based in Paris, France, and co-founded the UK-based company Abibiman Publishing, through which Nwelue self-publishes his own books.[24]

Bibliography

  • The Abyssinian Boy: (DADA Books, 2009)[25]
  • Wole Soyinka: Encounters with the Grey Maverick [26]
  • The Beginning of Everything Colourful: (Hattus Books, 2018).[27][28]
  • There Are No White People[29]
  • An Angel on the Piano (Griots Lounge, 2020)
  • Island of Happiness (novella)[30]
  • The Real Owners of Britain[31]
  • The Lagos Cuban Jazz Club (poetry)[32]
  • The Spice Bazaar (play, 2018)
  • Lemon Grass (fiction)[33]
  • Hip-Hop is Only for Children:[34][35]
  • Outside Weston Library (fiction)[36]
  • The Strangers of Braamfontein (2021)[37][38]
  • The Last Trains out of Ukraine (poetry)[39]
  • Burnt:[40]
  • Evening Coffee with Arundhati Roy (fiction)[41]
  • A Country of Extraordinary Ghosts, ISBN 978-1725659278[42]
  • 84 Delicious Bottles of Wine (with Odega Shawa), ISBN 978-1724334626
  • Saving Mungo Park (with Ikenna Chinedu Okeh, Hattus Books, 2021) (children's novel)[43]

Filmography

Controversies

After being invited to the Man Hong Kong literary festival, Nwelue was denied a visa to Hong Kong, sparking media outcry, the alleged reason being the colour of his skin. The decision was reversed and he got a visa to attend the festival.[49]

In 2017, Nwelue was brutalized by military men for trying to stop them from raping a sex worker.[50] A year later, Nwelue was arrested at the lobby of Onomo Hotel in Kigali and jailed for eight days, for allegedly "publicly insulting" Rwandan president Paul Kagame on Twitter and RwandAir.[51] Nwelue was released after the intervention of former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo. Prior to his arrest, he was a voluntary lecturer at Kwetu Film Institute, founded by the filmmaker Eric Kabera.[52]

In a May 2020 interview, Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka disclosed that some "wannabe Christian Ayatollahs" demonstrated over Nwelue's novel A Country of Extraordinary Ghosts, carrying placards that read: "Death to Nwelue".[53]

Having been an academic visitor at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford in 2021/22, a probe into Nwelue's conduct was launched after Oxford students reported he had charged £20 for attendance at a book launch in January 2023. When it was discovered that Nwelue had claimed to be a "professor" at Oxford and Cambridge on social media, a claim Nwelue denies, his visitorship was cancelled.[21] The reason given was "persistent unacceptable breaches of its terms". The fellowship itself, named after James Currey was later reported to have been set up to benefit Nwelue's financial associates.[54]. Madeleine Foote and Adrita Mitra accused Nwelue of misogyny, which he apologised for. Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, Professor Akachi Ezeigbo, Maxim Uzoatu publicly defended Nwelue, describing him as a 'global citizen' and a respecter of women [55][56][57]. Nwelue emphasised that he has been an assistant professor of African literature at the University of Manipur, India.


Nwelue had also been reported for social media posts stating that a poor upbringing "chains you mentally to be stupid" and that "no poor person has any value", as well as commenting "African women look like masquerades when they wear wigs and make up".[21][12]

In an uncharacteristic defense, Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka urged restraint, writing, "The ultimate responsibility is however his, and he has emerged upfront to accept this in a letter of apology. Now, it is the turn of the enabling environment to also take stock and clean up its act. ‘Casting the first stone’ is easy enough; ensuring that the baby is not thrown out with the bathwater is the harder, and far more productive responsibility. The literary world can do with more babies from the bassinet of The Strangers of Braamfontein!"[58]

Personal life

Nwelue identifies as a feminist; in an interview, after making The House of Nwapa, he said: "I made The House of Nwapa, because I am a feminist. I believe we are all equal."[59]

On 1 February 2018, a day after his 30th birthday,[60] Onyeka was involved in a car accident, sustaining injuries to his lower back. He was confined to a wheelchair for two months, before using a walking aid.

Notable awards

  • Recipient, Institute for Research in Women, Children and Culture (IRAWCC) Grant
  • Recipient, Princ Claus Ticket Grant 2013
  • Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Universite Queensland 2019.[61]
  • ANA Prize for Fiction 2021[62][63]
  • Best Indie Novel Winner- The Crime Fiction Lover Awards 2021 [64]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Obituary: Sir Chukwuemeka Samuel Nwelue". The Lagos Review. 2022.
  2. ^ Ikheloa, Ikhide Roland (11 September 2022). "'Crisis of narrative'… many of our storytellers are in bed with our oppressors and/or traducers – Ikheloa". Naija Times.
  3. ^ "As Violet Odiso 'SBC' Obiora Goes Home". The Nigerian Voice. 9 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Leslye Obiora J.S.D." The University of Arizona.
  5. ^ "The Nwelue Legacy: Emancipation of Slaves and their Education". Vanguard News. Archived from the original on 30 November 2021.
  6. ^ Jannamike, Luminous (28 July 2022). "At 34, how Nigeria's Onyeka Nwelue became most influential literati in Africa". Vanguard. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  7. ^ Nwelue, Onyeka. "University Education Is Nonsense, Or Is It?". 1st News.
  8. ^ Okorie, Mitterand (14 September 2018). "Is the next Nobel Laureate this 30 year old Nigerian maverick?". The Italian Insider.
  9. ^ "Photos | Wole Soyinka Hosts Private Screening of Onyeka Nwelue's AMAAs-Nominated Film, Agwaetiti Obiụtọ". 4 September 2018. Archived from the original on 5 September 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  10. ^ Abubakar, Murtala (29 October 2018). "Onyeka Nwelue: What Soyinka told me when I wanted to start making films". The Cable. Archived from the original on 31 December 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  11. ^ "INTERVIEW: Why I'm Not married at 50 - Jahman Anikulapo - Premium Times Nigeria". 24 August 2013. Archived from the original on 23 October 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  12. ^ a b c "Fake professor dismissed from Oxford apologises for misogyny at fraudulent book launch". Cherwell News. 2 March 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  13. ^ Adebisi, Yemi (7 October 2018). "ANA Releases Shortlist Of 2018 Literary Prizes". Independent. Nigeria.
  14. ^ Ndukwe, Jr., Eleanya (16 October 2018). "Onyeka Nwelue's Agwaetiti Obiụtọ: Pushing for Africa's socioeconomic and political emancipation" (opinion). The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 November 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  15. ^ a b OkadaBooks (18 April 2018). "#LiterallyWhatsHot: What Defines Happiness in Onyeka Nwelue's "Island of Happiness?"". BellaNaija. Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  16. ^ African Studies. "Academic Visitors". University of Oxford. The University of Oxford. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  17. ^ Society, James. "James Currey". James currey society. James Currey Society. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  18. ^ James, Currey. "Festival". bodleian Library. Bodleian. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  19. ^ Wadham College (1 September 2022). "Godfather of African Literature honored at Wadham". University of Oxford. Wadham College. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
  20. ^ University of Cambridge, Onyeka Nwelue. "Centre of African Studies". African Studies Cambridge. University of Cambridge. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  21. ^ a b c Clarence-Smith, Louisa (3 March 2023). "Author who claimed to be professor at Oxford and Cambridge loses academic visitor status". The Daily Telegraph.
  22. ^ Uchechukwu, Oghenekevwe (3 March 2023). "Controversy as Oxford terminates association with Onyeka Nwelue, David Hundeyin". International Centre for investigative reporting (ICIR). Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  23. ^ "What Young Africans Are Writing - an Africa Crossroads event".
  24. ^ Wood, Heloise (10 May 2021). "Abibiman Publishing launches with African and Caribbean focus". The Bookseller.
  25. ^ Amina Alhassan (8 February 2014). "No full-time writer in Nigeria - Onyeka Nwelue". Daily Trust. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  26. ^ Wole, Soyinka (2022). Wole Soyinka: Encounters with the Grey Maverick. Abibiman Publishing UK. ISBN 9781998995813.
  27. ^ "Award-winning Nigerian Writer & Filmmaker Onyeka Nwelue Shares Pictures to Celebrate the Release of his New Novel – the Beginning of Everything Colourful". BellaNaija. 14 June 2017. Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  28. ^ The Beginning of Everything Colourful. Parresia. 3 May 2017. ISBN 9781546467335.
  29. ^ There Are No White People. Abibiman Publishing UK. 2022. ISBN 9781739774776.
  30. ^ Island of Happiness. CreateSpace Independent Publishing. 2018. ISBN 9781983955433.
  31. ^ The Real Owners of Britain. The Real Owners of Britain. 2022. ISBN 9781739774776.
  32. ^ The Lagos Cuban Jazz Club. CreateSpace Independent Publishing. 2017. ISBN 9781548402006.
  33. ^ Lemon Grass. Abibiman Publishing UK. 2022. ISBN 9781998995899.
  34. ^ Pulse Mix (8 October 2020). "The new voice that we call 'Mr International'". Pulse. Nigeria.
  35. ^ Richards, Oludare (15 January 2015). "Nwelue on world tour with new book, Hip-Hop Is Only For Children". The Guardian. Abuja.
  36. ^ Outside Weston Library. Abibiman Publishing UK. 2022. ISBN 9781739693428.
  37. ^ "The Strangers of Braamfontein". Kirkus Reviews. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  38. ^ "The Strangers of Braamfontein by Onyeka Nwelue". Crime Fiction Lover. 22 September 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  39. ^ The Last Trains out of Ukraine. Abibiman Publishing UK. ISBN 9781998995868.
  40. ^ Ebenezar Wikina (23 April 2015). "Writing Is Only for Children: My Stroll with Onyeka Nwelue". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 28 September 2015. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  41. ^ Evening Coffee with Arundhati Roy. Bridge Books. 2021. ISBN 9780733426094.
  42. ^ "A COUNTRY OF EXTRAORDINARY GHOSTS - ONYEKA NWELUE". 5 September 2018.
  43. ^ Nwelue and, Onyeka; Ikenna Okeh. "Saving Mungo Park". Vanguard News. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021.
  44. ^ Ikheloa, Ikhide R. (27 November 2016). "Flora Nwapa and the house that Onyeka Nwelue built for her". Ikhide. Archived from the original on 26 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  45. ^ Ikeji, Linda (13 January 2017). "Onyeka Nwelue releases documentary feature 'House on Nwapa' on Youtube". Linda Ikeji's Blog. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  46. ^ Odunsi, Wale (16 May 2017). "AMAA 2017: Nollywood movies top nominations [Full list]". Daily Post Nigeria. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  47. ^ Nwelue, Onyeka (4 September 2017). "Preying From Paris: Why Oguta Will Remain The Way It Is". Olisa Blogazine. Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  48. ^ "Wole Soyinka hosts Onyeka Nwelue to a private screening of his movie 'Agwaetiti Obiụtọ' in celebration of his AMAA nominations". 4 September 2018. Archived from the original on 17 October 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  49. ^ Nwelue, Onyeka (15 August 2010). "The wrong passport". YNaija.
  50. ^ Ozikpu, Elias (25 February 2017). "Military Brutality Against Nigerians: The Incident of Bonny Cantonment by Elias Ozikpu". Sahara Reporters. Archived from the original on 10 September 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  51. ^ "Rwandan government reacts to assault allegation leveled against its investigation Bureau by writer, Onyeka Nwelue". 6 November 2018. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  52. ^ "An evening with Nigerian writer Onyeka Nwelue". The New Times. 11 June 2018. Archived from the original on 15 June 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  53. ^ "Interview Wole Soyinka 2020". www.projekt-cassandra.net. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  54. ^ News, Cherwell (15 March 2023). "Dismissed academic visitor ran unofficial "Oxbridge fellowship" scheme for financial associates". Cherwell. Retrieved 16 March 2023. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  55. ^ Times, Premium. [htps://www.premiumtimesng.com/opinion/586493-beyond-nwelue-an-enabling-environment-by-wole-soyinka "Beyond Nwelue: An enabling environment"]. Wole Soyinka. Premium Times. Premium Times. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  56. ^ Review, Lagos. "The Enigmatic Onyeka Nwelue". Akachi Ezeigbo. thelagosreview. Thelagosreview. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  57. ^ Newspapers, GP. "There is only one Onyeka Nwelue". Uzor Maxim. globalpatriotnews. GP Newspapers. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  58. ^ Soyinka, Wole (6 March 2023). "Beyond Nwelue: An enabling environment, By Wole Soyinka". Premium Times Nigeria. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  59. ^ Ibrahim, Abubakar Adam (2 October 2016). "Why I made a documentary on Flora Nwapa". Daily Trust.
  60. ^ Bivan, Nathaniel (3 February 2018). "A tale of 2 Onyekas and one birthday". Daily Trust.
  61. ^ "Rome2020home2".
  62. ^ "Onyeka Nwelue, Kehinde Akano, others make ANA prizes short list", Phenomenal, 21 October 2021.
  63. ^ "2021 literary prizes shortlists out - The Nation Newspaper". Archived from the original on 6 December 2021.
  64. ^ "The Crime Fiction Lover Awards 2021: The Winners", Crime Fiction Lover, 8 December 2021.
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