Why we target secondary school leavers in new degree programme – VC

Vice chancellor, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Prof Abdalla Uba Adamu has clarified that the new degree programme in film production recently introduced by the institution would be best suited for young secondary school leavers than professionals currently in the industry.

Adamu said the programme, recently approved by the National Universities Commission (NUC), is to address the present trend of film production that depicts Western culture, while relegating the local culture and values.

“There was a conference organised by the University of Illinois, United States. At that conference, they suggested that there should never be a name like Nollywood or Kannywood and that any film that comes out from Africa should be called Nollywood. I raised my hand and disagreed. I told them that in the northern part of Nigeria we produce our distinct movies that have nothing to do with Nollywood. So if we agree that we are part of Nollywood, it means that we have been subsumed; all our culture, values, religions and traditions have no place to be seen.”

Adamu said on many occasions, university lecturers teaching Hausa language in Europe encountered the challenge of persuading their students of the originality of Hausa films, which they find inapplicable to the real culture of the tribe.

“In Iran, there is a university where Hausa is also being taught; maybe because they are Shi’ites, they wanted to understand the language more. Even there; Hausa movies were flayed and discountenanced.