Akanbi emerges ANA President
Dr Shehu Usman Oladipo Akanbi, a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Agricultural Economics and Farm Management, University of Ilorin, has been elected as the 14th President of the umbrella association for creative writers in Nigeria and in the diaspora, the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA).
Dr Akanbi emerged as winner with 124 votes against 85 votes garnered by his opponent, Hajiya Farida of ANA Niger Chapter,at the 42nd Annual General Meeting and International Convention of the Association held penultimate Saturday (November 4, 2023) at the Association’s Permanent Secretariat in Abuja.
By his election, Dr. Akanbi enters into the shoes of immortal literary giants of African Literature such as the late Prof. Chinua Achebe, who formed the Association in 1981 at the Maiden Convention of the Association which he convened at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he was elected as its pioneer President.
Other giants whom Akanbi would be looking up to as past Presidents include Kole Omotoso, late Ken Saro-Wiwa, Odia Ofeimun, Prof. Abubakar Gimba, Prof. Femi Osofisan, and Prof. Olu Obafemi, among others.
A man of prodigious talents, Dr Akanbi, who was President of the Students Union of the University of Ilorin in the class of 1991, was also conferred with the prestigious Fellowship of the Association immediately after his election.
Apart from his academic writings as a scholar of Agricultural Economics, Dr Akanbi has numerous titles in the creative writing genre including ” L’abake Isale Eko and other stories”, “Weevils on Grains “, a poetry collection, “Suppletunes in Tightangles another poetry collection” and “Tales across the Plains” , a work of prose. In the year 2009, Dr Usman Akanbi’s poetry collection, Verdant Verses, won ANA Poetry Prize runner up.
Speaking with UNILORIN BULLETIN after his election, Dr. Akanbi appreciated the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, Prof. Wahaab Olasupo Egbewole, SAN, whom he said had shown keen interest in his bid for ANA presidency and had put a call across to him hours after he was elected to congratulate him and wish him well in office.
The don also said that ANA under his leadership looks forward to deeper participation of the University of Ilorin scholars along with other scholars in Kwara State.
He added that he would encourage younger writers who are studying in the University to join ANA, noting that “when young people are part of a group or society, the society has a future to look forward to, but when a group does not mentor its young, the young people will seek mentors in other spheres.”
Reacting to the development on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, the Director of Corporate Affairs, University of Ilorin, Mr Kunle Akogun noted that Dr Akanbi’s election into the exalted office is no surprise for many reasons. He pointed out that the don is a typical UNILORIN talent, who is both a patron and a practitioner of creative writing.
The Vice Chancellor added that Dr Akanbi is also following in the footsteps of a retired UNILORIN don, Prof. Olu Obafemi, who was the National President of the Association from 2001 to 2005 and added that Dr Akanbi is also the scion of a family which loves creative arts, in addition to its reputation as a family of distinguished legal practitioners.