The Cross River State Government has called on private investors to key in into the Leboku international festival in order to use it showcase the rich culture of the people to the international world.
Mr. Gab Onah, the special adviser to the Cross River State Governor on Tourism Development, who made the call at the weekend, said the Senator Liyel Imoke led administration intends to make the Leboku festival a money spinning industry.
Onah explained that Leboku festival was an event for events management department of governor’s office as it was listed in the calendar of the state’s events, stressing that all the promises Senator Imoke made last year as regards making the festival an icon of events and world class have been fulfilled.
According to him, the state government has chosen three local government areas, Yakurr, Bekwara and Akamkpa to key into the state’s tourism plan in order to showcase the rich culture of the people to the international community through their various new yam festivals.
He commended the telecommunication giant MTN for identifying with the celebration and its selflessness, expressing optimism that the company would have better collaboration and understanding so as to continue to impact on the people as part of its corporate social responsibility.
The special adviser promised that despite the government’s involvement in creating a conducive environment for the promotion of tradition and culture in the state, efforts are made to ensure that the culture of the people is not adulterated and always remain intact.
Also speaking, chairman of Obol Opol Traditional Council, Ojor Clement Iwara who stood in for the Obol Opol disclosed that all security arrangements for the success of this year’s Leboku festival have been put in place and commended the state government for all the promises made to the community which he said have all been fulfilled.
He said the government has encouraged the people to be serious with agriculture which has started producing bumper harvest at the end of every planting season.
He said his people were fully prepared and in high spirit to take the festival to a greater height, adding that there was a difference in this year’s celebration as a festival market has been created on the day of grand finale so that people could buy as much yams as they want.
Also speaking, the MTN representative, Mr Charles Uwota, said MTN decided to come together with the Cross River State Government in order to take Leboku festival to a greater height.
Uwota said MTN believes that the festival will boost the culture and tradition of Africa to higher level.
“MTN has actually come together with Cross River State Government to promote Leboku and take Leboku to a greater height. And again, for us to understand one more thing, Leboku is a festival that is actually in everywhere in Nigeria. People appreciate the festival so much”.
He further contended that, “MTN is a brand that has come to identify itself with a very good culture which is Leboku new yam festival, so MTN has come to boost Leboku as a culture to a higher level”.
Commenting on the celebration, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Culture and Heritage, Mrs. Edisua Usang Iso, said that the department of culture and heritage was trying as much as possible to introduce a variety of activities to boost this year’s Leboku new yam festival.
Her words, “of course the maidens that are from Yakuur are going to parade during this program and as you even see as we walk in the community right now that the costumes and the beads and the top if you walk bit closely to them you see that it just have a little thing in form of bra that covers their breast we are trying to be sure that this content of the culture of the people will not be tampered with”.
She said that though culture is dynamic, “but in as much as we want to build in some costumes we won’t destroy the real culture of the people. We can change their fabric attires to African make made to give us the look or what we are expecting”.
It is a cultural celebration that is how this department is coming in why tourism is coming in to promote the culture to an international level and of course event management come in to play to make sure that the event is properly managed to an international standard.
Our correspondent reports that the annual cultural festival in central part of Cross River holds on Saturday, August 22 for this year.