ANA President, Camilus Ukah felicitates with Wale Okediran on his appointment as Secretary General of PAWA.

ANA PRESIDENT, CAMILUS UKAH FELICITATES WITH WALE OKEDIRAN ON HIS APPOINTMENT AS SECRETARY GENERAL OF PAWA.

The newly elected national President of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Mr. Camilus Chima Uka has congratulated the founder and Director of the Ebedi Writers International Residency, who is also the current Deputy Secretary-General (Africa) for the Union of Writers from Africa, Asia and Latin America, Dr. Wale Okediran on his recent appointment as the Secretary General of Pan-African Writers’ Association (PAWA) which was communicated through a press release signed by Nana Kwasi Gyan-Apenteng, Chairman, PAWA Steering Committee.
According to Camilus Uka, the former national President of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) is a renowned writer and a thorough bred practicing medical doctor who possesses requisite experience and international exposure to perform as Secretary General of the Pan-African Writers’ Association (PAWA).

“The Association of Nigerian Authors under my leadership view Dr. Wale Okediran’s appointment as Secretary general of the Pan-African Writers’ Association (PAWA) as a round peg in a round hole as we believe that the confidence the General Council of PAWA repose in him is as a result of the successes he recorded during his tenure as ANA National President and his independent literary projects like Okigbo @ 50 Celebration, Efuru @ 50, Things Fall Apart @ 60 to mention but few.

“We have no doubt that Dr. Wale Okediran will deliver as Secretary General of the Pan-African Writers’ Association (PAWA). He is a dynamic and enigmatic writer who will in no distant time make meaningful and appreciable impact as Secretary General (PAWA). We are confident that Dr. Wale Okediran will perform beyond expectations as Secretary General of the Pan-African Writers’ Association (PAWA).

Camilus Uka finally assured Dr. Wale Okediran of ANA’s support and corporation.

Wale Okediran was born on April 14 1955 in Oyo, Nigeria. He attended the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife) where he qualified in April 1980 as a Medical doctor.

After working in a number of government and private hospitals for a number of years, he went into private medical practice in 1987 by establishing the Cornerstone Medical Centre in Ibadan. He remained in active private practice until 1999 when he went into active politics and was appointed Chairman, Oyo State North Hospitals Management Board. He remained in this position until 2003 when he contested for a seat in the Federal House of Representatives, Abuja where he represented his constituency from Oyo state from 2004 till 2007.

His writing career started way back in his secondary school where he was an active member of the school’s press club and debating society. At the University of Ife, he edited a campus newspaper, Rip Off”. He has published till date twelve novels out of which nine are adult fiction and three are for children. Many of the books are on the reading lists of several Nigerian Universities such as the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan, University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nasarawa State University and University of Maiduguri among others.

In his positions as the National Treasurer, General Secretary and later National President of the Association of Nigerian Authors, he contributed in no mean measure to the development of Literature in Nigeria through the establishments of ANA branches, organisation of Literary Seminars, Conferences and Publications.

In June 2010, together with a few friends, he established the first Writers Resort in Nigeria ;The Ebedi International Writers Resort in Iseyin, Oyo State. The Ebedi International Writers Residency is a private initiative for writers to complete their ongoing works in a conducive environment at no cost. Since its inception, in 2012, the facility has hosted more than 100 writers from 10 different African countries. It also offers publishing opportunities to its Fellows through an arrangement with one of Nigeria’s foremost publishing outfit, the Literamed Publishers, Oregun Lagos.

He is currently a Consultant to the National Assembly in charge of the Senate Committee on Health and the House Committee on HIV, Malaria and TB.

His Publications include:

• Rainbows Are For Lovers (Spectrum Books 1987)
• The Boys At The Border (Spectrum Books 1991). Shortlist for the 1992 Commonwealth
Literature Prize.
• Storms of Passion (Evans, 1995)
• The Rescue of Uncle Babs (Mcmillan, 1998) Winner of the 1999 ANA/Matatu Prize for Children’s Literature.
• Ten novellettes on the HIV/AIDS theme (Longman, 2001)
• Sighs of Desire (Caltop, 2002)
• Dreams Die At Twilight (Malthouse ,2002) Longlist for the 2004 NLNG Literature Prize. The
• book was also adjudged as one of the 25 best books in Nigeria in the last 25 years by Spectrum Books in 2004.
• Strange Encounters (Heinemann PLC, 2004) Winn