Julius Agwu
Comedy
brings laughter and eases tension. But can it really bring peace to a
society in crisis? Julius Agwu wants to answer this question with his Crack Ya Ribs show holding in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, AKEEM LASISI writes
Celebrated comedian Julius Agwu is luring
a bevy of other humour mongers and musicians to the stage in Port
Harcourt, Rivers State tonight. But his annual show, Crack ya Ribs,
aims at performing more than the traditional feat of casting jokes. He
is exploiting it to campaign for peace in the oil-rich city that has,
in recent times, been at the centre of political fever.
Being an Ikwere, Rivers State man, he is
concerned that Port Harcourt, which had enjoyed peace for about seven
years, after it escaped from the hook of militants, is in the news
again. According to him, the peace that has reigned in the city was
secured at a price. So, all hands must be on the deck to keep it and
reduce tension.
“I have decided to tag this year’s edition the Peace Show
because we are trying to use comedy to drive home the fact that we
don’t want animosity or acrimony in Port Harcourt and Rivers State in
general. We shouldn’t have forgotten so soon what we experienced in the
recent past. There was a time that businesses relocated because of
crises. Night life was killed. It was not until the current dispensation
came into being that peace returned to the state.
“As a progressive indigene and one who
grew up in Port Harcourt, I am not happy that peace is beginning to
elude us again. Rivers people are peace-loving. We do not support any
fight between brothers. We don’t want to be the laughing stock of other
states. And once there is no internal security, progress will be
hampered.”
He adds that in the past when the crises
peaked and entertainers stopped staging shows in the city, all parties,
including up-and-coming artistes, lost.
He says, “We use Crack Ya Ribs to
discover and nurture talent. We don’t want a situation these talented
young men will become idle and carry guns again, only for us to begin to
ask for amnesty.”
He stresses that although he is not a politician, he believes in the principles of fairness and justice.
“I am a voice of the voiceless. I speak
the minds of youths of Rivers State. We are not happy to see what is
happening . There are those who are beating the drums of war. But what I
know is that when there is war, nothing really moves. As we celebrate
the birth of Christ, we want to make it joyous. It is not ‘Merry
Christmas and quarrel New Year,” Agwu notes.
He believes so much in the no-more-war
campaign that he has urged some of the comedians coming for the show to
create jokes that reinforce the gospel of peace.
He adds, “The role of a comedian is not
just about making people laugh. You have to use your talent for social
change. When people are laughing, you should still be able to pass a
message that will enhance society. Comedy has to be didactic – more of
edutainment and infotainment.”
Agwu also feels fulfilled that Crack ya Ribs
has, over the years, helped in discovering and nurturing new talents in
comedy and music. But on his strides this year, he says things have
been so good for him that , as he captures in his book, Jokes Apart, he
cannot stop wondering how he gets to his current pedestal. And he says
the industry also generally recorded growth.
“There was a boom in the industry. Apart
from the fact that more comedians were raised, the industry has gone to
another level, even in terms of branding. For me, I thank God he has
been really good to my family and I. I celebrated my 40th birthday this
year. I published Jokes Apart and my family had a new addition. How did I
get here? It is through the grace of God. Nollywood is 20 this year, it
means I also celebrated my 20 years in the entertainment industry
because I played the role of Small Peter, alongside Francis Duru, in
Rattle Snake. What more can I say? That is why I often say ‘We can be
age mates, but we are definitely not grace mates.”
Artistes expected to perform at the
event holding at the Aztec Arcum are Igodye, Seyi Law, Osama, Acapela,
Rugged Laws and Romeo. Kcee, Burna Boy and Ijaw Boys are among the
singers.
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