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Mobilising Yoruba Popular Culture: Babangida Must Go

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2011

Jonathan Haynes
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Abstract

Nigerian video films are often characterised as apolitical. A rare and significant exception is Gbenga Adewusi's Maradona (also known as Babangida Must Go), which was released in 1993 in response to the annulment of the 12 June 1993 presidential election by the military ruler Ibrahim Babangida. The film is a fierce denunciation of the annulment and of the whole political regime, employing a number of Yoruba and transnational cultural forms: the chanted poetic form ewi, skits by artists from the Yoruba travelling theatre tradition, the televisual forms of music videos, news broadcasting and call-in shows, and the resources of print journalism. This film demonstrates the political potential of the video film, but also the limitations of the video distribution system.

Résumé

Les vidéofilms nigérians sont souvent qualifiés d'apolitiques. Une exception rare et significative est le film de Gbenga Adewusi intitulé Maradona (encore appelé Babangida Must Go), sorti en 1993 en réponse à l'annulation de l'élection présidentielle du 12 juin 1993 par le chef miliataire Ibrahim Babangida. Ce film dénonce avec force cette annulation et l'ensemble du régime politique, en employant diverses formes culturelles yoroubas et transnationales: la forme poétique chantée ewi, des sketches satiriques d'artistes issus de la tradition du théâtre itinérant yorouba, les formes télévisuelles de films musicaux, les programmes d'informations et les émissions avec appels d'auditeurs/téléspectateurs, ainsi que les ressources de la presse écrite. Ce film démontre le potentiel politique du vidéofilm, mais également les limites du système de diffusion de ces films.

Type
Research Article
Information
Africa , Volume 73 , Issue 1 , February 2003 , pp. 77 - 87
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2003

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