The writer, doctor in Nwadiogbu
Lagos-based medical doctor, Nathaniel Nwadiogbu, forges ahead as he publishes more novel Nicholas Okeugo write
While in the secondary school, Nathaniel Nwadiogbu’s literary instinct progressed to writing of plays and, this, did not prevent him from studying Medicine and becoming a medical doctor later in life.
With his play, entitled, ‘My Greatest Mistake’, being aired by the Anambra Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), way back then, Nwadiogbu received the booster to propel his writing vocation, which had paid off for him.
This medical practitioner’s first book, The Death of Justice, is a masterpiece that got rave reviews from top national dailies and this gave him the impetus to follow up with another book entitled The Kidnappers, which is still making waves in the bookstores, being a topical issue in the country.
‘The Kidnappers’ captures the ‘unbearable disparity’ in Nigeria, with the Niger Delta as a case study. “Kidnapping became prominent in the region as a result of greed on the part of the elite, who, always maintain the status quo,” he stated.
“The books I write represent what is going on in the county. For me, I was not born with any spoon, I have seen deprivation and lack. But, God, in his infinite mercy, has been seeing me through. I acquired my educational training by scholarship, because if not by dint of hard work, it would have been difficult for me to be a medical doctor, coming from a poor family”.
Being a medical doctor is no mean feat, especially, in a country where one struggles to eke out a living, let alone footing the bills of a medical student. He, actually, weathered the storm even studying abroad for a reputable profession. Notwithstanding, he still makes out time every day to sketch his storyline for a book.
How does he combine both his career and vocation? “It has become a norm for me that whenever something flies into my head, I quickly put it down on a piece of paper so that I will not forget it. If not done that way, I may not recollect it and it is gone for good. Later, I find time to develop the idea and getting it published as a book.”
So, reading the book, The Kidnappers, Nwadiogbu used a character of one who turned from virtue to vice as depicted by Sunny Boy, which is the fulcrum of the activities by militants in the Niger Delta. As far as he is concerned, Niger Delta will continue to be on the front burner, inasmuch as there is militancy. “Ever since the discovery of crude oil in the region, Nigeria, as a ‘geographical expression’, foisted by the British, has not known relative peace since.
The country, he said, has been convulsed by many problems including class war among the citizenry. According to him, nobody was born a criminal, but, it is the environment that influences what one becomes in life.
In essence, deprivation of citizens’ needs of existence, especially, with what goes on in the Niger Delta, translates to injustice.
In essence, deprivation of citizens’ needs of existence, especially, with what goes on in the Niger Delta, translates to injustice.
Nwadiogbu pointed out the hard fact that it is a battle between the so-called politicians, increasing the political temperature in the polity, which remains unabated.
