By joshua 
Reading Café Organiser, NLNG award winner, other intellectuals urge FG, others to encourage reading, fight drug abuse
Ayo Ola
The convener of Reading Café, Mrs Lechi Eke, and other intellectuals, have appealed to the three tiers of government and corporate organisations to invest more in reading as well as critical and creative writing as potent measures to reducing youth restiveness and insecurity, as well as boosting national development.
The other intellectuals are the 2024 Winner of the Nigeria LNG Limited sponsored Nigeria Prize for Literature, Olubunmi Familoni; Associate Professor, University of Lagos, Prof. Nurayn Fola Alimi and Deputy Director, Library, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Dr. Favour Okafor.
They stated that such an investment in literary activity would make Nigerian young people to be positively engaged and reduce the propensity for indulgence in crimes and other anti-social activities, including insecurity.
They also warned against drug abuse, adding that such menace poses great dangers to the perpetrators and the society at large.
They spoke during the 10th anniversary of Reading Café 2025 organised by Finishedwork Enterprises in collaboration with National Association of Students of English and Literary Studies. The event which was supported by United Bank for Africa and Quramo Ujeme Media Services Limited, also featured poems delivery and drama, a panel session and other literary activities.
Eke who also is of the Finishedwork Enterprises, called for efforts to improve reading culture among students.
Noting the negative impacts of social media and other inventions on the students, she said efforts should be made to make the students focus on the positive benefits of the inventions. She stated that reading develops the mind, nurtures the readers to be good citizens and by extension creates a better society.
She called for corporate organizations and the government to invest more in education and reading and harped on creative writing as one of the strategies to sharpen the intellect of students and other young people.
She explained that the Reading Café that is in its 10th edition was one of her strategies to encourage reading culture, get young people more intellectually busy and so avoid indulgence in unwholesome conducts and activities.
She lauded UBA, other corporate organisations, individuals, friends, relatives and Christians for supporting the Reading café.
She also commended the Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Bishop Mike Okonkwo and his wife, Bishop Peace Okonkwo, for their constant prayers for the success of intellectual venture.
Familoni said: “Encouraging reading could be also another way of trying to address social issues such as drug addiction, hooliganism, and insecurity. Imagine more young people reading. They will have less time to be involved in these crimes. We’ve seen it happen in many societies. You get it very, very often, mostly in the U.S., in those African-American communities, they have these libraries. They have these bookshops and things where they use it to distract young people from joining gangs and all of that. So, yes, definitely something that will improve.
He also said that there is the need to address waning reading culture in the country. He said more awareness should be created on the importance and positive impacts of reading., adding that books should be affordable.
“I think that is the most that you can do. Address them, bring it to people’s awareness, even the government’s awareness as well, but that’s as much as you can do. Just address, and I think it’s very important as well, you get that right that literature is doing that.
“It is very necessary to address waning reading culture. Reading improves the mind, and improves the way that one thinks and the way one acts. And of course, we know that that’s one nation building. It’s about thoughts, it’s about ideas, and all of that. Now, one way that we can do it, I think first of all, we are talking about affordability, about making books more affordable, more accessible, and one very important way is maybe corporate organizations investing in acquiring these books and making sure it’s available for students
“Government and corporate organisations should invest more in books. That way the reading culture will definitely be improved. They should invest in it, make sure that books are subsidized, and also improve the state of libraries. Also, there should be more of this kind of summit and making sure that there is more sensitization about reading,” he added.
Alimi said reading and creative writing would nurture people into better citizens and enhance a better society.
He called on the students to be more diligent with their studies, reading voraciously and responsibly and be good ambassadors of the institution.
Okafor decried the effects of drug abuse and urged the students to avoid indulging in the menace.
She stated that many people who are involved in drug abuse in their early lives carry such an unhealthy habit for many years.
She noted that some of the victims lose self confidence while others go into self-withdrawal and may even commit suicide.
Okafor, who noted that drug abuse had wrecked many people and unleashed incalculable damage on the society, urged all concerned authorities to step up the fight against drug abuse in the society.