Nigerian writer and author, Iwu Jeff has released his book, ‘ Verdict of the Gods ‘ (a play), published by Transconventional Publishers, Abuja, Nigeria.

‘Verdict of the Gods’ is a play that takes us back to our roots as Africans — the traditional belief in the gods’ phenomenon — an act of talking with gods which is not disconnected from our way of socialisation, stemming back to time immemorial. In this play, man recants his steps from the creator — the gods, and the outcome becomes calamitous; a prize for straying or taking his feet off the paths of the ‘gods’.

Bringing it home, the play is simply a compendium of the Nigerian society in doom. A society in hunger and thirst for change. A society in dire need of a saviour (who would pay the price) to restore her to her lost glory.

From the play, it is depicted that the unpleasant things and shadows of death we see in our society are brought upon us by the vicious attitude of our leaders who see evil and relax in it — issues of greed, corruption, killings etc. These things anger the ‘gods’ and we suffer for it — a case of a clash between two elephants — the grasses feel the pains. We need salvation for things to be normal again.So, ‘Verdict of the Gods’, calls for a communal effort or attempt to face our challenges and address them holistically.

Here are what great writers say about the book:

The play Verdict of the Gods quarries into the world of traditional leadership responsibility for communal well-being and brings us into contact with yet another lesson that our world has refused to learn.

Denja Abdullahi — Director, National Council for Arts & Culture, Immediate Past President, Association of Nigerian Authors(ANA), UNESCO Regional Expert(Africa), Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity(ICH) , Poet, Playwright & Culture Technocrat, Shortlisted, 2018 Nigeria Prize for Literature (DRAMA).

The reassuring kinetics of African Literature is that vibrant young writers are fanning the embers of the muse. Here is one more promising voice with his play entitled, Verdict of the Gods. The story races home with the rich escort of appropriate proverbs and the reader is rewarded by the pleasant shock of a messianic climax where a king unusually pays the ultimate price by giving his life for the redemption of his people.

Dr. Camillus Ukah Long Listed NLNG Prize Prose 2008, Winner ANA/ Lantern Prize Prose, 2012.

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