Theatre:With Po, National Rot In Focus

Jonathan Swift, the Anglo-Irish writer, who said,
‘satire is assort of glass, wherein beholders do
generally discover everybody’s face, but their
own’, cannot be forgotten in a hurry.
This aphorism was recently played out at the
Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, Lagos, when as
part of moves to encourage stage performance,
the facility presented a comic stage play, titled Po!
Featuring the duo of Nedu and Ogbolor, the play,
which was written by Femi Branch, directed by
Obi Martins and produced by Yaw satirically x-
rays Nigeria’s socio-economic situation.
Opening with the duo, taking their baths in
preparation to go back to their street cleaning
job, Po tells the challenges people living in single
room apartment building generally referred to as
face-me-I-face-you go through to take their baths
in the morning or carry out other chores in the
compound. It tells how some people, who could
not use the general latrine within the buildings
use potty to ease themselves.
The play redefines the significance of potty,
depicting how as a catalyst it could make anyone
sitting on it to think because of the length of time
spent on it.
However, someone takes Nedu’s potty and he
begins to look for it.
Succinctly highlighting the gluts of challenges
facing Nigeria as a nation, the play showcases the
decay in the academia, politics, traditional rites in
Igbo land, women dress sense, public contractors,
judiciary and even the electorate.
Seeing the political class as being gullible and
would do anything to remain in power, the
comedians show how the electorates collaborate
with politicians by collecting money (stomach
infrastructure) and other incentives to vote for
people, who they know cannot deliver their
election campaign promises. They call on the
electorates to interrogate politicians representing
them at all levels, calling them to give account of
their steward and also to monitor their activities.
They stress that such attitude would make
political leaders to be responsive and responsible
to the electorate.
While calling on the electorates to monitor
politicians, Ogbolor, however, disagrees that his
cousin, a politician, should be interrogated. He
rather sees his winning the election as time for
his family members to enjoy the national cake.
This on its own shows the insincerity of the
electorate and reasons, the country many a time
appears ungovernable; as most people judge
others, but fail to subject their family members to
the rule.
Using story in a story technique to move from
one theme to the other, the duo, pick on ladies’
dress sense, describing it as irate, suggestive and
a show of nudity. One after the other, they
disclose how this dress sense have affected the
male sensibility, making them to act contrary to
their planned purposes at a given situation.
Moving on to the academia, the two-man satirical
stage play reveals how some female students
debase themselves with male lectures, soliciting
for marks and grades they do not work for.
Stressing the importance of keeping our streets
clean, Po tells the profligate of government at
awarding contracts. It reveals the horrible tales
of clearing the gutters and sweeping the streets,
only to find the garbage cleared from the gutters
go back to them and also how the winds help
litter the streets because the waste are never
removed by authorities concerned.
The cleaning company lack of essential work-
tools to effectively chart away the heap of rubbish
cleared from the gutters and streets, personifies
essential sectors like the health, security,
education and other sectors that lack the tool to
carry out their work. It also shows the inept on
the part of government to supervise their
contractors.
As funny as the play may seem, it would be
appropriate to balance some of the views
presented, because theatre apart from
entertaining guests serves as a veritable medium
to educate, create awareness of negative thing in
the society and as well correct misconceptions.
The twosome overplayed the role of women.
They made the female gender appear as if they
are the only amoral being in the society. While
highlighting their near nude dress sense, they
failed to hint on the sagging the male gender do
and also the shameless way some men flaunt
their hairy chests and biceps before the ladies.
The director needs to be informed that this male
dress sense offends the ladies just as the mini and
boob display wears arouse the men.
A female student enticing a male lecturer with sex
just to make her pass his tests is not only done by
the ladies in the tertiary institutions because the
male students also have their own ways of
getting those marks. Presenting this as if it is a
crime committed only by female students tints
the play against the feminine gender. It gives it a
sexist colouration, especially when the twosomes
are both men.
Another noticeable shortcoming is the projection
that the Igbo make merchandise of their
daughters through bride price. Though, bride
price may be high in some parts of Igbo land, it
does not mean that the sub-tribe concern trade
with their daughter, as a close look in the tribe
would show that the better part of the money so
collected goes back the groom. So, presenting it
as the ethos of the people is misleading because
while some people may be known to charged
high bride price, the Ohafia people of Abia State,
which are among the same Igbo people still
charge low bride price; in some cases as low as
N5. The director needs to do his research
properly before generalising on the issue.
Lastly, Nedu overdresses, he presented himself
like one, who acts on impulse and recites his
lines. Furthermore, Nedu frequent opening of the
box before him before he introduces new theme
tells the audience that he reads from the box.
Ogbolor shows high level of comportment and
brings out his words and ideas from the depth of
his heart.
Presented by Yawnaija Entertainment, Po
presents the good, the bad and the ugly in
Nigeria, in a humorous way. The play leaves us
with the lesson that we are all part of Nigeria’s
problem and that until we all play our roles as
expected, we shall be moving in retrogression,
never advancing and would never amount to a
great nation; the dream of every nation. It
highlights these ills so that our new government
will learn and make amends.