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Eulogies As Uyo Book Club Honours Ekong Sampson on Senate Victory, Udeme Nana Canvasses Book Economy

By Samuel Udoma

March 25, 2023 was yet another momentuous day in Uyo Book Club. It was the day the club, during its March Reading Session, celebrated her patron, Dr. Ekong Sampson on his Senate victory. Dr. Sampson, lawyer and writer is the Senator-Elect for Akwa Ibom South. He is one of the major backers of the book club culture, which has grown tremendously in the State over the past few years.

A former State Environment and Petroleum Resources Commissioner in the State, Dr. Sampson also sits as advisor to the Watbridge Group, whose facility Uyo Book Club has used for free for the past three years or so now. In his earlier years, he had served as Chief Legislative Assistant to the legendary Senator Udoma Udo Udoma. He was also a former Chairman of Council and later, two term State Lawmaker for Mkpat Enin. Sampson is making a spectacular return to the nation’s Red Chambers, where he started his political sojourn.

The William Shakespeare Hall of Watbridge Hotels as always, provided the perfect canvass for a book dinning. The hotel itself, has earned plaudits for its support for literacy and scholarship. It is the only hotel in this part of the world with a well stocked Guest Library, named after renowned writer, Ngugi wa Thiong’o. A book event in Shakespeare Hall is like a mass in the Sistine Chapel. The seclusion it offers, the sane aura, the adorning murals on the walls and its iconic naming gives Shakespeare Room a mystique.

Under reading floodlights and club members, the Hall in the evening of every last Saturday of the month, is usually a sort of an escape from the precipice of the everyday hustle and bustle – very calm, bare and withdrawn. So far, it has remained a standout location in Watbridge.

Uyo Book Club, founded by Dr. Udeme Nana, a media scholar and teacher, is apolitical. But for Sampson’s Senate ambition, the club had put a veil on its creed and openly endorsed the former Mkpat Enin Council helmsman for the top job. It was a bold statement. A pat on Sampson’s back from the literary community, egging him to go on, win and make the clan proud. Dr. Sampson has promised to take the book club culture to the National Assembly.

Saturday’s session was then indeed, an evening of eulogies for Barr. Sampson. The Senator-elect, through his victory, has earned few milestones on the way. He is the first Akwa Ibom writer-journalist to assume such a highly placed elective political office. Although a respected lawyer too, in the Senate, he will be among a few with close ties with the literary community.

He will however also, be hoisting the flag for lawyers, journalists, writers, poets and publishers. With Uyo Book Club also housing the younger generation of upcoming writers and students, the likes of Dr. Sampson are true role models. Dr. Bassey Ubong, well known writer and former Provost, College of Education, Omoku, Rivers State was also in attendance at the session.

Club founder, Dr. Udeme Nana in his congratulatory oration, lauded the Senator-elect Dr. Ekong Sampson on his ‘inspiring victory’. Dr. Nana described Sampson as an ‘Angel of the Book Club initiative’ and urged him to be an ambassador of the Books ecosystem in the the Senate and National Assembly. Dr. Nana, a former Senior Media Aide to former Governor, Victor Attah, noted that it was time Nigeria ‘explored trajectories in the book economy’. He stated that with proper funding and legislation, the book economy can boom and ‘just like oil, become a major revenue spinner for the nation’.

Responding, the Senator-elect for Akwa Ibom South, Dr Ekong Sampson expressed gratitude to Uyo Book Club for always standing by him in his Senate bid. He said he was buoyed by the waves of support he has received since his win, noting that he will do well to repay the confidence through effective representation.
Sampson stated that in the Senate, he will be representing a clan of writers and as such, can’t afford to fail. In his words:

‘Writers don’t fail. Politics is actually a super highway for service to humanity’. He charged more writers to get involved politically, so as to ‘help decongest the power traffic’.

‘Our society will get better when more writers get into elective and appointive positions’ Sampson said. The Onomkpoinam Mkpat Enin promised to take the book club culture to the Senate, saying ‘Nigerians must be encouraged to read more’, while maintaining that he will always be there for the book club:

‘I’ll be coming here and taking part in your sessions. I’ll also be worrying you, as it were, for your inputs, because if there’s one group that can generate great inputs for the Senate, it is Uyo Book Club. So, I’m very proud to be a member of Uyo Book Club. I’m going to the Senate as your ambassador, as one of you. I’ll always be conscious that I’m representing a very important tribe, that will challenge me to do even better’.

Dr. Sampson equally took out time to offer insights into his drive in public service and leadership as well as the Nigerian question:

‘The tragedy of Nigerian democracy is that we spend a lot of time looking at our false lines. We tend to celebrate victories over battles, instead of victories over wars. So quite often, we win the battle and lose the war.

A time has come for Nigeria to look beyond immediate gains, look at how we can strengthen our institutions and firm up the democratic space. And ensure that not only do we have democracy, we also have good governance, because democracy without good governance is meaningless’, he said.

The club patron intimated that in due time, the book club can be having reading picnics in places like Abuja to further enrich and expand the reading consciousness.

To add spice, another patron of the club and in-house poet orator, Dr. Martin Akpan offered a rendition of Sampson’s ‘My Pen Is Pregnant’ in honour of the Senator laureate. Other members of the book club also took turns in eulogizing Barr. Sampson on his accomplishments. Highpoint of the day was the toast to a successful Senate tenure for Dr. Sampson by members of the club.