INTERVIEW IN

NEW NIGERIAN NEWSPAPER

Saturday January 28, 2006

There is similarity between literature and PR  - Yushau A. Shuaib

Our guest for this week is Mr. Yushau Abdulhameed Shuaib, a prolific writer, author and award winning PR practitioner. A graduate of Mass communication from Bayero University Kano, he holds Diploma from International School of Public Relations, London and Postgraduate Diploma in Banking and Finance from University of Abuja. He has won several awards for writings and public Relations activities. Notable among them are Public Relations Person of the Year, NYSC State and National Honours awards, which also provided him with automatic employment in Delta State and Federal Civil Service. His working experiences spanned Government House, Asaba and Federal Ministries of Information, Finance and Health. He is presently the Head of Press and Public Relations in Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission. He has a dedicated website www.yashuaib.com for his literary pieces and other works.

When and how did you start writing?

I started writing in the university, to express my innermost feelings on happenings within the society. The early writings were letters to the editors, poetry and fiction, which were published in the print media. In fact the Kano-based Triumph newspapers encouraged and promoted young writers in their desire to get published.

What inspired you into writing?

I was inspired by desire to free my mind from bondage of frustration by voicing out those ills in the society. My writing is another way of contributing to national debate on topical issues affecting humanity, the society and sometimes to send a clear or coded message to particular individuals and relevant publics.

As a published writer, how would you describe your publishing experience?

Unfortunately established and popular publishers are reluctant to publish works of young and new writers, they prefer to publish books on or by big personalities which may not likely be educative and informative. These unbecoming attitudes of the publishers encourage the proliferation of self-publishers who do not understand the nitty-gritty of publishing. That is why many books are substandard, poor in contents, cover design, finishing and marketing. Since publisher always give stringent conditions before publishing new entrants, smart young writers submit their manuscripts to professionals on the fields and to proofreaders for editing to conform to ethical standard.

Any suggestion as to how publishing could be made a bit easier for young writers in Nigeria?

Since most publishers are unwilling to promote the works of young and new writers, the government should intervene by compelling them to consider the works even if by dedicating a fraction of their annual turnover for the purpose as their contribution to corporate social responsibility.

What about the idea of book launching?

The essence of book launching/presentation is to create public awareness as marketing strategy on new books. The monetary contributions from the launching are intended to subsidize the cover price or to cover the cost of publication by self-publisher. But unfortunately many books that are launched with pomp and funfair are few copies that are hardly in the bookstand because most of them are glorifications of personalities instead of serving as educative materials. That is why clever authors write biographies of VIPs and make millions from well-wishers and patrons. If the purpose of book launching is for sudden wealth, poor writers should be cautious as they may incur huge debt from ceremonial outing. But if you are somebody or child of somebody, you can even write a book with the title “How I Chop” and still make millions from the launching

How many books have you written so far and which one would you term as your best?

I have four published books. They are Nightmare for the Rich, Writings for the Media, Financial Public Relations and A Dozen Tips for Media Relations. I cannot precisely point out one as the best because each book is unique with specific theme. In fact my unpublished novel, The Journey, whose manuscript got missing would have probably been the best because it was my first lengthy work. It’s theme centered on cultism and campus politics. I wrote it too while I was a student in the university.

Your novel, Nightmare for the Rich, which I reviewed sometime ago was quite a literacy success. How is it doing commercially?

In fact the novel was extremely successful. After the third reprints, I couldn’t reproduce it again due to militating official engagements and other constraints. But hopefully very soon it will be reprinted, because there are tremendous demands from youths and womenfolk because of its soft angle on romance

Your treatment of the attitude of the rich and the poor was very descriptive. Looking at the contemporary Nigerian society, would you say things are improving or getting worse since the time you wrote the book in terms of the gap between the rich and the poor?

Unfortunately the gap is still wide that is why the rich and the mighty still force their children to marry from opulent and popular families. What even encourage this rich-for-rich syndrome is the media that provide platform for pictorials and video clips from such wedding events of the rich. Unfortunately, deliberate rich-to-rich marriages hardly last, after the grand celebrations. The media too hardly give coverage to weddings of the poor, just as the rich prefer to send their wards to elitist school, as further attempt to segregate their children from the rest of us.

What inspired you to write your latest book, A Dozen Tips for Media Relations?

I realize that many organizations are recruiting and appointing non-professionals to serve as their spokesperson and to liaise with the media. Even a journalist needs to understand the strategies of media relations to fit into the management function of public relations. In fact the book is about what I may call useful tricks in media relations.

What is the book all about?

The book is a theoretical and practical approach for effective media relations. As the title implies, it has a dozen useful steps that can assist those who wish to establish and sustain their relationship with media for adequate information dissemination. The twelve basic concepts have samplers after each chapter from the author’s experiences

Would you say there is a connection between public relations and literature?

Yes there is. Public relations and literature are geared to inform, educate and sometimes entertain their public. While literature may have element of style with coded message, public relations activities are straightforward at establishing and maintaining mutual relationship with the stakeholders and the publics

How soon do we expect another publication from your tireless pen?

Feature writing is continuous; I contribute articles regularly for the print and Internet media on issues affecting the populace. But the next book would be influenced by the environment, situation of things, public demand or need.

As a civil servant how do you cope especially on some of your critical feature articles in the newspapers?

I have been writing since my university days. In fact I founded and edited two widely circulated campus informative publications: Campus Voice magazine and Campus Express newsletter. Writing is my hobby just as others take to sports, traveling, hunting, and partying as their hobbies. I probably wouldn’t have got automatic employment awards because the recognitions for the awards were largely based on my writings. I try as much as possible to do research before I put pen to paper for my opinions. I am very careful due to my double identity as a civil servant who is cautious of what he writes and a free citizen who has the constitutional right to express himself freely to the benefit of the society.

Can you mention your best features?

There are many of them, though most of them are based on the reality on the ground at particular periods, but are still relevant today. Take the example of my 1992 article 419 and the Rest of Us. Those that received quite a number of rejoinders are: Igbo Politics and Hollywood Movie, Memo to Armed Robber, Taming the Elders, From Privatization to Demolition, before the Stoning on Sharia, Legislative Slap and Gender Equality, A Nation Corrupted by oil. At the last count I think I have about 100 published articles syndicated amongst the national dailies

How can one have a glimpse of some of those writings?

I have a dedicated website which I design myself for my writings and other works. The site is www.yashuaib.com where you can read most of my features; short stories, poems, my organization and two of my other books are posted on the site for easy and free access. I am not stingy of ideas.

Have you ever regretted any of your writings or received any threat.

Even in the university I was receiving threats due to stories published in my campus magazine. You know that campus journalism is about gossip, sensationalism and those scandalous stories in girls’ hostels. During my youth service too, the NYSC directorate wrote a rejoinder against one of my critical article on corpers’ plights. The governor of Delta state then, Olorogun Felix Ibru once asked his Special Adviser (Chief Paulinus Akpeki) to summon me for my criticism on government lackadaisical attitude to Urhobo-Itshekiri imbroglio. But the state was magnanimous enough to offer me automatic employment and also scholarship for postgraduate programme in any university of my choice, immediately after my service. Though I don’t fear any consequence from my published opinions, I get concerned, sometimes scared, if I remember that I have a loving family who depend on me.