Consciousness, Literature and the Arts
Archive
Volume 13 Number 1, April 2012
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THEATRE, RELIGION AND NATIONAL INTEGRATION: A STUDY OF REGINA ODE’S THE MASQUERADE CALLED RELIGION
BY
Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri
AND
Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education Owerri
Introduction
Apparently, Nigeria is one of the most religious nations in the world. However, this is superficial indeed, it could be argued that she is one of the most unholy, disunited and chaotic nations in the world. The nature of her instability is shown in ethnic or religious clashes; for example, the Hausa – Igbo clashes in Jos way back in 1945. More recently, the clashes in Kano, Kaduna, Kafanchan, Bauchi etc: the coups and counter coups; the 30 – month – long civil war, the problems within the political classes and so on. Almost always, these disturbances drag the nation to the verge of collapse. But despite the seemingly irreconcilable plurality and diversity, Nigeria has amazingly shown the capacity to remain united. This is an incredible phenomenon ( Mike Odey,80).
The above quote sets the tone for this discourse. This is because, all over Nigeria, there has been anguish, religious crises/riots, mutual distrust as well as chaos across the landscape that project a state of dysfunctionality. In the last decade, the unity of Nigeria as a nation has been threatened by religious conflicts which are linked to control of territory, material, economic and natural resources. Samuel Kefewo reiterating the above submits that:
… tied to the issue of religious crises is the question of political domination and marginalization … added to this is religious intolerance and identity articulation … ethnic and religious conflicts have engulfed Shagamu, Kano and Lagos, while tension and threats hang ominously across many states in the country (4).
Given the above scenario, there is a strong need for social cohesion and re – orientation towards nationalism. Suffice it to say that, it is the spirit of nationalism that can breed a lasting reconciliation of the different ethnic and religious interests for the common good of the nation.
It is against this backdrop that the writers’ interprete Regina Ode’s The Masquerade Called Religion as a dramatic text that re – echoes the need for national cohesion and integration, nationalism, patriotism and development which most Nigerians hope and long for.
Religious and Ethnic Crisis in Nigeria: Historical Overview
As earlier mentioned, religious and ethnic conflicts remain the greatest challenge that threatens the nascent democracy of Nigeria. Salawu’s chronology of the religious crisis in Nigeria from which we would quote extensively come in handy here. He submits that before the present democratic experiment in Nigeria, there were ethno – religious conflicts that claimed so many lives and property. Notable among such crisis are the Maitatsine religious disturbances in parts of kano and Maiduguri in the early 1980s; Jimeta – Yola religious disturbances (1984), and Zango Kataf crisis in Kaduna State (1992). Others are Kafanchan College of Education Muslim - Christian riots, Kaduna Polytechnic Muslim - Christian skirmishes 1981, 1982); and the cross versus the crescent conflict at the university of Ibadan (1981 – 1985). Yet, other early ethno – religious conflicts include the Bulumkutu Christian – Muslim riots (1982); and the muslim – Christian clash during a Christian procession at easter in Illorin Kwara state (1986). (1). More recently, between 2002 till date, religious and ethnic crisis have engulfed Jos, Bauchi, Kano, Kaduna and several Northern states have in one way or another suffered this menace. The effect of the Jos Plateau state (2010) crisis has left bitter memories of loss of lives and property with devastating effects across the state and country at large.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) cited in Hammed Shittu reiterates this when it says; “The recent Jos crisis like others in the past, are unfortunate in many fronts. It is so unfortunate because of the senseless killings that have resulted into loss of human resources… this has further damaged the international reputation of our country” (2). Suffice it to say that “the contradictions of the conflicts and anxieties fueled by these problems have culminated in a major civil war, several military coups, fragile attempts at democratizing religious, ethnic and tribal crisis and the rise of ethnic militias”.(Martin and Josephine, 1).
Okpeh O. Okpeh strongly agrees with the above assertion when he posits that contemporary Nigeria is no doubt at the crossroads. Never in the history of its existence as a nation has it so helplessly entangled in the intricate web and contradictions of having to define the substance, nature and character of its sovereignty (1). The above captures the state of the nation in recent times as religious crisis and related incidents have put the nation into confusion and fear of the unknown as a result of the catalogue of religious conflicts across the nation. Suffice to mention that, religious crisis widen the deep ethnic divides among the various ethnic groups.
According to Salawu, the problem of ethno – religious conflicts and incessant recurrence of ethno – religious conflicts, which have given rise to many ethnic militias like the Odua People’s Congress (OPC), The Bakkassi Boys, The Egbesu Boys, The Ijaw Youth Congress (IYC), and the Igbo People’s congress (IPC) and so on … with the emergence of these ethnic militias and the deep divides between the various ethnic groups, religious intolerance has become more violent and bloody with more devastating results, using the ethnic militias as executors of ethno – religious agendas (1). These conflicts pose a serious threat to national unity and integration. More so, security of lives and property is threatened and cannot be guaranteed as can be seen from the recent crisis in Maiduguri and Bauchi States where the Boko Haram sect engaged in Wanton killing and Maiming of Innocent citizens.
It is necessary to note here that, the ‘rebranding’ quest in Nigeria today that is geared towards changing the badly tarnished, distorted and obscure image of Nigeria and Nigerians is as a result of the various negative brands that these problems earlier highlighted have given birth to. These negative brands include the brand of corruption, Nepotism, and last but not the least, the brand of ethnicity and religious bigotry which over shadows the nationalist spirit and brand of nationalism that should be in the fore of our national Agenda. Mbachaga lucidly captures this threat and feels that:
Another serious challenge to the rebranding quest is ethnicity and religious bigotry that bedevils the Nigerian polity. The issue of religious crisis and ethnic clashes and sectional politics has dominated the landscape of Nigeria’s democracy today (435). Martin and Josephine agree with this when they submit that; “Nigeria’s efforts at achieving national integration have remained largely unrealized. The integration crisis facing Nigeria is manifest in the minority question, religious conflicts, ethnic politics, resource control, youth restiveness and several negative vices” (1). The above points to the fact that the history of the Nigerian state is embellished with images of disintegration, which is linked to inter ethnic, intra – ethnic, community, inter – community, and intra – religious conflicts’. We can therefore boldly submit here that the democratic experience in Nigeria has suffered under the brutality of ethno – religious crisis because of mutual suspicion and fear as well as selfish interests of a selected group of elites who want to ascend and keep their hold on power at all cost.
Theatre and National Integration
Nigeria’s democracy is a nascent one that has experienced several political problems which have devastating consequences to the very foundations and stability of the state. Most of these problems are connected to religious and ethnic anxieties fueled by selfish political ambitions and power tussle of the elites. It is imperative to note here that the concept of “national unity implies the task of forging the aggregate unity of all the ethnic groups in Nigeria into a common nation state. This has been the greatest task and challenge that has confronted the Nigerian nation since independence. The question of national unity and co – existence often at times referred to as the national question represents the question of disunity and instability in Nigeria” (Uji, 158). This means that national integration can be fostered if the citizenry understand that Nigeria as an ethically plural society needs a commitment to the national cause and not religious or ethnic loyalties. This is because; a national identity gives a collective identity to the masses and is proof of a national consciousness. Theatre as a cultural activity has great potential and power of engagement that is unique and unparalleled. The power of engagement goes beyond the boundaries of mere entertainment where it captivates, mobilizes, educates and becomes an ‘eye opener’.
Olu Obafemi sucintly captures this when he points out that;
… The potential to utilize the theatre to positively mediate the human, political and economic conditions of our people. I believe that it is the frightful awareness of the potential of arts.(especially the theatre) to mobilize the laboratory consciousness of people against state falsehood that politicians and apologetic state agencies show greater reluctance across the world especially the world of the southern hemisphere(21).
It is within this ambit that theatre as an art becomes a tool that challenges and awakens aspirations of the masses. This is realized when the creative spirit and energy of the people is released so they can make things and do things for themselves. Through theatre, we step back from ourselves to reflect, explore, observe and interprete our environment. In the words of Gowon and Onah; “As an embodiment of several arts, such as drama, dance, music, costume, lighting, playwriting, directing, choreography, drumming, singing, masquerading, poetry etc, the theatre is an important tool for influencing social change” (6).
The instrument of theatre becomes a dominant tool of mediation in the political process of our country in a bid to promote national unity and break the existing frame and ideology of ethnic nationalism which dominates our political arena today. Several playwrights have championed this cause in their works. The works of the late Hubert Ogunde readily come to mind here because the then colonial, later military and civilian governments could not stomach his plays and performances because they pushed and demanded for political change. Not to be left out are playwrights like wole Soyinka, J.P Clark, Ola Rotimi, in the first generation wave have shown their commitment to issues of cultural nationalism. What Olu Obafemi describes as an “engagement in topical, politically committed dramas” (269).
Other ways that theatre and indeed the performing arts are used to foster unity include the National festival of Arts and Culture – (NAFEST) which is a yearly event and more recently, the ‘Abuja carnival’ has been a strong tool that the present regime has used to foster national unity because the both events bring together various artistes and performers as well as the Nigerian populace and other participants all over the country who showcase the rich cultural heritage of the various tribes not minding their religious affiliations or loyalties.
Synopsis of Regina Ode’s The Masquerade called Religion
The Masquerade called religion tells the story of how religion is manipulated as a tool in the hands of the political elites so as to gain political ascendancy. In the world of the play Regina Ode weaves the story around party politics and electioneering in which two political parties struggle to win the forth coming election and one of the political parties – the Peoples Interest Party (P. I. P) brings out a campaign strategy of using religion to ‘divide and rule’ the people by all means possible so as to avail themselves of the ‘National cake’ which is the political name for the wealth of the Nation or the gains that comes to individual politicians and or groups. The party officials under the leadership of the Chairman hatch the divide and rule plan and execute it by breeding enmity and intolerance through mutual distrust between the Christian faith and the Muslim faith. However, when Hajiya confesses and Ahmed hears it and makes moves towards reconciliation of the masses. The play ends with the Chairman’s group loosing the elections because the market people discovered that they are not credible candidates.
Play Interpretation
The events that unfold in Ode’s The Masquerade called Religion are reminiscent of events in the Nigerian polity. Though, a work of fiction, it captures explicitly the Nigerian situation showing how the political elite manipulate religion in order to gain political ascendancy. The cabal, in the world of the play is vehemently bent on gaining power by all means to the detriment of the masses. In happening two, the meeting of the gathering of the high and mighty in society, the plot to dislodge and rule by every means possible is discussed and the Chairman proposes the following strategy for the party to achieve its goals:
MR. CHAIRMAN. Ladies and Gentlemen, in order to break the right arm of our common enemy, I submit that we divide his camp. It is said that a house divided against itself cannot stand, Er… what I am suggesting I believe is clear enough; we divide both religions to be at each other’s neck(The Masquerade Called Religion, 11).
When asked what he means, chairman reiterates that he is actually “proposing the divide and rule tactic” and the divisive weapon now will become religion (11). This puts the cards on the table and shows the extent to which politicians are willing to go in order to get themselves into power. In this instance, ‘religion’ becomes a strategic weapon. This is a stark reminder of the political conspiracy by the political elite to manipulate the religious and ethnic differences to realize their political ambitions. This is because; different groups, individuals and sections have divergent interests and views regarding how appointments should be made, how the wealth of the nation should be shared, which tribe or individual should get which portfolio or position. As such, “ethno – religious crisis occur when deprived groups and individuals attempt to increase their share of power and wealth or to modify the dominant values, norms, beliefs or ideology” (Salawu, 2).
Ode in this play directly attacks the political elite by flagrantly lampooning and exposing their wicked schemes. She shows concern regarding the plight of the proletarian population and the issue of how national unity is manipulated by the political elite. The vehemence with which these political elite pursue their dreams is captured when Chairman further says that;
CHAIRMAN. … Let me tell you that no sacrifice is too much for this (our dreams) if you all understand what it means to be in power. Look, the national cake is only inches away from our fingers and anything that will hinder us from getting to it must be mowed down. (Masquerade, 13).
The above is reminiscent of the class of politicians in Nigeria today. These are politicians who believe that politics is an investment and easy door way for amassing wealth and not the process of securing power for good governance. Aniagala citing Ejeke corroborates this when he says that these politicians in Nigeria conceive politics and political offices in terms of the ‘material gains and social influences’, they will acquire from such positions. It is an avenue for political and economic empowerment, which will guarantee a life style of affluence arising from the sharing of the ‘national cake’ (53).
In the world of the play, the likes of Chairman, Prof. Effiong, and Senator Mahmud represent people who form a cabal that breeds underdevelopment in our nascent democracy.
Ode, does not hide her disgust for this set of politicians who are visionless as regards the development of their country. She frowns at the social trauma resulting from the political scheming of the dominant bourgeois scholarship and its concern for material acquisition rather than the general well being and improvement of the quality of human existence in the country. The stage is set for the execution of the ‘divide and rule’ tactic by the Peoples Interest Party (PIP) when Hajiya Zainab slips a full page of the Qu’ran among the wrapping sheets of one akara hawker while pastor Ndubusi also reports of how he misinformed his congregation “of an inpending evil that would be inflicted on the land by the Islamic community. That God had revealed to him that the Islamic community was going to rise up against them soon…” (21).
In happening three, where the party members meet to assess the plans so far. Hajiya narrates how she achieved her part in the scheme thus:
HAJIYA ZAINAB. … I am the master schemer in this game. I hold the ace. Just listen to the piece that let hell loose upon this land. I carefully, quietly and cunningly slipped a full page of the Qur’an among the wrapping sheets of one akara hawker. For your information, I was at the market that morning ; I called her to buy some of the akara… I gave her a very large denomination of our currency knowing it was too early for her to have enough change… she went in search of change, that was when I carried out the act. A few of my friends in the market had already been alerted the previous night that some of the sellers were committing abominable acts against the name of Allah, by using the Qur’an indiscriminately, especially as wrapping sheets… ladies and gentlemen, I was in the safety of my house when… the war had begun (Masquerade, 22).
The impact of the above scheme on the life of the ordinary citizens is seen in happening two which the playwright symbolically tagged ‘The Manifestation’. Mai gworo in the process of interacting in the market observes that the akara girl is actually about to wrap akara for somebody with a piece of paper and on peeping, sees a page of Qur’an.
MAIGWORO. Kai na wetin be dat? (pointing from afar, he moves closer and snatches the piece of paper, spilling the akara) Lai, la ila ilahu, Mohammadu rahim… (rants away some Qur’an verses mixed with hausa).
AKARA HAWKER. (clearly dumbfounded) Ah, ah wetin? Na wetin?...
MADAM BEER SELLER. Chi – ne – ke Maigworo no be my akara you throw – way for ground so? L-O – O – K, eh, if na joke make you…
MAIGWORO. Joke, J – o – k – e you carry am por (for) Qur’an tie am por (for) akara, you call am por (for) joke? This one na abomination,kai,w alai ta lahi.[He utters some Arabic and hausa words and muslim buyers and sellers begin to gather in earnest around him,he holds the piece of Qur’an up for all to see explaining to them. His anger has become uncontrollable at this point.]
Drunk: No be ordinary paper?Wetin una just dey halla like say person don kill person?I beg na paper joo,no mind them madam.
Hajara: Eh… you call am Qur’an ordinary paper? [By this time many other Muslim faithful have been drawn into the argument with everybody chanting away one verse or prayer in Islam. It is obvious that the Muslims are raving mad at the sight confronting them.] (The Masquerade,18).
This is where the camel’s back is broken and the expectation of the planners is met as adherents of both religions tear themselves in a free for all fight and destruction which reminds us of actual happenings in several cities in northern Nigeria in recent times that sparked off the venom of religious crisis.
Another issue treated in the play is the issue of the wrong political orientation that the Nigerian masses who form the electorate have as regards elections and voting rights. This is expressed through the exchange at the market square between Maigworo and Balogun.
MAIGWORO. How you see this election wey dey come?
BALOGUN. Me until dem give my wife salt, I no go vote for
Any body. Even sef when dem win dem go siddon
For air – condition motor dey pass me for road,
Me I go dey trek come sell … (Masquerade, 6).
The above exchanges show how the masses sell their power of franchise over a morsel of bread. As such the political campaigns by aspirants and political parties mouth empty promises which are distant from the realities of the dividends of democracy and good governance.
Suffice it to say that, the true picture of the situation as it affects the ordinary Nigerian is a situation where during campaign hustling there is an exchange of a few naira notes and bags of salt or drums of red oil for the votes of the masses which they gladly surrender without a hoot.
This kind of voting behavior depicted in the world of the play is perpetuated by poverty and has become the order of the day in Nigerian politics which has become an obstacle in the electioneering process of our nascent democracy.
Conclusion
In this paper, we have examined the issue of ethno – religious conflicts in Nigeria and its effect on national integration of the citizenry. Government and all stakeholders cannot continue to pretend or trivialize the phenomenon that is fast becoming hydra headed. Regina Ode’s dramatic creation is another acerbic satire on political corruption in Nigeria as well as ripostes on visionless leadership of the ruling class. She aptly uses her creative dexterity to realistically engage the prevailing socio – political conditions in Nigeria of which religious crisis are in the fore. Her social vision as a playwright in this play is a call for the masses who are the dehumanized, manipulated and deprived in our society to arise collectively to challenge the status quo – the dominant ruling class in a bid to push for a shift in the response to the plight of the masses.
This is
achieved through two characters Ahmed and Ada who reveal the truth about the
plot and reconcile the warring parties. This move symbolically is the author way
of saddling the responsibility of change on the youths and suggesting the need
for harmonious living as well as tolerance among the Nigerian populace. More so,
it is a call for collective unity towards development laying aside religious
differences. This study
observed that Politics and politicking in Nigeria as seen in the world of the
play is not ideologically oriented because campaigns are done with crude and
selfish motives which are against the true motives of true democracy where, the
rulers place equity and fairness as guiding principles. Again, the “majority
rule” is often described as a characteristic feature of democracy, but without
responsible government it is possible for the rights of a minority to be abused
by the “tyranny of the majority”. An essential process in representative
democracies are competitive elections, that are fair both substantively and
procedurally. Furthermore, freedom of
political
expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are essential so that
citizens are informed and able to vote in their personal interests.
Most of the developed countries in the world today have embraced democratic
rule, in which the freedom of their citizens is guaranteed, the basic social
amenities are provided and witness an obvious progress in terms of basic
infrastructure, vibrant economic and a sustainable growth that transformed into
economic development, employment generation, housing for all, healthcare
delivery, security of life and property is guaranteed, well equipped army,
qualitative education, vibrant civil service, proper plan for retirees among
others. Instead of these, our leaders place priority in personal gains through
corruption and mismanagement that hinders economic development of the nation. Suffice to
mention that, Nigeria as a nation needs a total overhauling especially as
regards our political, cultural and religious values which must begin with
genuine religious tolerance and national re – orientation of the masses that
places emphasis on social pluralism. This can be
achieved by intensifying the public education and enlightenment programs on our
media outlets aimed at the Nigerian electorates using the indigenous languages
and to effectively reach the rural populace, such campaigns should be extended
beyond the mass media to cover villages, and suburbs that experience ‘Media
darkness’ through the use of town criers and community organizing techniques
like village meetings, meetings with key stakeholders and so forth.
Government should ensure through legislation that, Political misfits and opportunists who are morally bankrupt as symbolically represented in the characters of Chairman, Hajiya and their cohorts in the world of the play should never be voted for or allowed to contest for offices in the country. In this regard, the push for this policy by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is laudable and should be given full support by other related agencies for its realization.
Again, the porosity of Nigerian borders should be looked into because often, the mercenaries used to perpetrate these atrocities are non – Nigerians from neighboring countries such as Niger and Chad whose citizens have been arrested on several occasions during crisis. More so, the various agencies that are responsible for justice, law and order should ensure that perpetrators and sponsors of religious crisis are properly punished by the law to deter reoccurrence. A nation that is politically unstable does not attract foreign investors because the economy is also affected when crisis occur. As such the spate of religious crisis across the Nation have continued to deter economic growth in this regard because security reports are in the negative and nobody wants to risk his fortunes in a volatile situation.
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