NCB: We have here with us, a Tutor, an Award winning Literary writer, an ardent lover of Wole Soyinka, the only OWIWI that shrieks. You’re welcome Owiwi🤝
OWIWI: Thanks for having me
NCB: Let’s start from your nickname, Owiwi. How did you come about this name?
OWIWI: Owiwi is the Yoruba word for an owl. The bird is symbolic. For me, it represents a whole lot of things. It represents wisdom and foresight. Its nocturnality also attracted me to the name. And the rhythmic repetition of “wi” in the word also appeals to me. Besides, Owiwi sees, observes when no one else is watching; when every other person is in deep slumber.
NCB: It symbolically means you’re a sage!
OWIWI: Maybe.
NCB: Tell us about yourself and your background.
OWIWI: My name is Ridwan Olanrewaju Adedeji. I am from Oluponna, an agrarian community in Ayedire Local Government, Osun State. I am my parents’ first child. I blog, read novels, and do some little writing. I am at the moment of this interview a final year student of the prestigious Department of English, Obafemi Awolowo University.
NCB: “An agrarian community”, is your dad a farmer?
OWIWI: Kind of. He is more of a poultry farmer.
NCB: Being the first child of your parent, you must have had a lot of experiences while growing up. How was growing up for you like?
OWIWI: Well, like every first child, I was subjected to several experiments. The primary and secondary schools I attended were experiments. For example, I went to a secondary school where I was one of the pioneer students. The choice of OAU too, I believe, is probably an experiment too.
I had a wonderful childhood, one that afforded me the chance to try several mischiefs. I was practically like the Yoruba Eshu, the god of mischief. I also basked in the sensation of smuggling my father’s history textbooks and novels for personal reading. So, my childhood experiences are actually memories I hold dear and would love to relive.
NCB: Obviously, you inculcated reading habit from your dad, is he a teacher?
OWIWI: I believe so. Most obviously from mum. I owe much of my development to her though. My dad is a trained teacher. He had a degree in Islamic Education. But he doesn’t teach. He focuses more on his birds and politics.
NCB: Tell us briefly about your blogging. How has it been so far?
OWIWI: I started blogging in Part 1. I started with owiwishrieks.wordpress.com. There, I post my petty poems, stories, and opinion pieces. That perhaps explains why Owiwi Shrieks stuck to me. Most of my colleagues do not know my real name. It’s Owiwi this, Owiwi that. Later on, I deleted the whole thing when I got bored of writing. I found it pointless writing about a country that seemed irredeemable.
So I turned my attention to posting literary analyses of secondary school texts and other literary texts I find captivating and appealing. With that, I started Literature PADI. So far, I must say it’s been inspiring. The traffic has been coming; comments are encouraging. And the stipends I make have been taking care of some of my expenses; at least, buying books.
Just yesterday, March 24, we celebrated our one year anniversary. It’s been really exciting turning my passion into something the society needs and appreciates.
NCB: “I found it pointless writing about a country that seemed irredeemable.” What do you mean by this?
OWIWI: Then, I realised we, writers, only write. Nothing changes. A greater fragment of the society does not read. The ones that read do not imbibe the lessons and values conveyed. And nothing changes. Everything remains static. Our country keeps deteriorating. My conviction then is recently reinforced by a similar assertion I found in Femi Osofisan’s The Oriki of a Grasshopper.
More importantly, I wanted something different. I needed badly a transformation from an embittered young man who whined, cried, complained, espoused ideologies, and did nothing.
I have read a lot of African novels and plays. From Ngugi to Soyinka, the messages are the same. They portrayed the same human miseries and values of collectivism. But practically, no one listens.
NCB: You are an award-winning Literary writer, how many (awards) have you got, and at what merit if I may ask?
OWIWI: That’s a way of flattering me. Just a few shortlists. That’s all. A runner-up of John Onuigbo Essay Competition (2019); the first runner-up of Decephas Essay Competition (2020). I won an essay competition too as a teen.
NCB: wow! A great writer indeed! You made mention of your dad being a politician, did you, at any point in time, have interest in politics?
OWIWI: : I have always had interest in politics all my life. This is probably influenced by the history textbooks I read as a teenager and the several times I had to eavesdrop whenever political meetings were conveyed at our house. I am a political person. I have always engaged in political talks and arguments every now and then; at home with father; in school with colleagues; with co-tenants in Modakeke; with co-passengers in buses. If I am called to serve my people, I would. I am never the type to shy away when duty calls.
NCB: Will I be correct to say you’re a devout Muslim?
OWIWI: Technically, yes!
NCB: Conflating Islam with politics, how do you see that?
OWIWI: Islam does not conflict with politics. Islam, in fact, is political in structure. I find it rather absurd when devouts distance themselves from politics. How can we change the country, the miseries of the people, the warped value system in our society if we all disassociate ourselves from politics?
NCB: Ok, Let’s talk about OAU. Why did you choose OAU?
OWIWI: Let’s just say I was surrounded by educated people who advised me to choose OAU.
NCB: So, how has been your experience so far?
OWIWI: It’s been splendid. And I have never for once regretted my choice.
NCB: With your response, will I be right to say you are on good grades?
OWIWI: I’ve never been serious academically. For my level of commitment, I would say yes.
NCB: Based on your experience in the department, do you believe that studying hard usually amounts to having good grades?
OWIWI: Of course, yes.
NCB: Will you recommend OAU as the best school to study English Language for your loved ones?
OWIWI: Hhhm … Yes. I have not tried other schools though.
NCB: We have heard countless times that life after school is the biggest reality, what is your preparation for this, and which area are you planning to specialise on after school?
OWIWI: My course of study offers limitless opportunities. But, if I am to decide right now, I would say the publishing industry. My love for the glossy covers of books, the worlds they open me to and the insight they provide to the understanding of human beings can not be substituted with anything. Literary blogging is another thing I want to get serious about.
NCB: What is your advice about the 21st-century relationship issue?
OWIWI: I have none!
NCB: Alright! Where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?
OWIWI: A potbellied man in flowing agbada spewing lies to the masses . . . (Smiles) A joke actually!
In ten years time, I hope I would still be a man, with conscience intact, striving to imbibe the core values of Omoluabi; teaching my kids and people around me to do the same.
NCB: lol😁
What is your advice for your fellow Naselsites?
OWIWI: My advice to them is to make the best use of their time on campus; surround themselves with like-minded people — people who would see in them what they otherwise might not see in themselves. As John Dewey would say, “education is not the preparation for life; education is life itself”.
NCB: Any shout-outs?
OWIWI: Shoutout to NCB OAU. Shoutout to Hamid. Shoutout to Tunde. Shoutout to Kinggold. Shoutout to the Class of Titans; to colleagues without whose materials some of us would not dream of excelling in academics.
NCB: It’s so great to have you here.
OWIWI: It’s a privilege on my part.
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