•Future World movie sheds light on Niger Delta challenges
Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has assured Nigerians that the Petroleum Industry Bill law will be ready before the end of the Eighth National Assembly.
Giving the status of the bill, which has passed through various readings in both chambers of the National Assembly, the senate president declared that “this Eighth National Assembly has taken the bull by the horns. We have been making conscious efforts to ensure that we progress the passage of the law; which has gone through various readings. But, I promise Nigerians that, before the end of this legislative assembly, definitely, the bill will be passed.”
Saraki gave this assurance last Friday night, through his representative, Senator Abdullahi Sabi, at the formal presentation of the International Tourisms Borse Berlin’s Golden City-Gate Film Festival award in Germany, which was won by a Nigerian artist and film maker, Wilfred Ukpong, with his film, Future World, in the Eco-Tourism category.
Nigerian Ambassador to Germany, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, who received the award from the organisers of the International Film Festival held in Berlin, on behalf of the artist, formally presented it to him. He was assisted by senator Sabi.
After the screening of the film before the audience, Senator Saraki observed that the message in the film is “quite clear and apt,” noting that “it is an early warning of the impending danger in the Niger Delta,” and advised that “all the stakeholders must take it seriously.”
While presenting the trophy to Ukpong, Tuggar noted that “Future World” is a piece of work that provokes discussions around some of the most topical issues of the day: environmental pollution and climate change, youth employment and migration, energy mix and international trade,” adding that Nigerian government is already taking a good step to finding permanent solutions to the challenges.
Receiving the award, Ukpong, a multidisciplinary artist and filmmaker, said that “the 7-minute film narrative conflates around climate change, environmental pollution, and health-related issues and draws from true-life stories, and regional myths to create a captivating abstract universe pulsing with some of the most profound historical, ecological, and socio-cultural issues of our time.”
Among the guests at the event were Mr. Vice Chairman, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, Udom Inoyo, Dr. Isaac Thompson Amos, Chairman/CEO of Thompson & Grace Investment Limited, sponsors of the film, Regine Hess, Deputy Head of Mission in German Embassy, Abuja, Mr. Wolfgant Jo Huschert, President of German Film Producers Association, and Director in Thompson & Grace Investment Limited, Mr. Otobong Amos, .