Baoku Moses lights up naija with Peace Offering Project

The Nigerian entertainment scene will, in a few months from now, be lit with different genres of music and other cultural elements that tell the Nigerian story.

Tagged, Peace Offering Project, the initiator Baoku Moses, a notable afro-artiste and professional dancer, disclosed that it is one of the ways of bringing peace and unity among the different regions and ethnic groups in the country.

He noted that the project hopes to use music and entertainment theatrics to reach out to the people, preach peace, sooth the nerves of those injured or lost loved ones, aside appealing to group on reprisal mission to sheathe their swords.

Moses, who has just returned from the United States for the project, disclosed that he was divinely touched to embark on the project, saying it is non-political, non-religious and nonpartisan.

According to him, the security challenges emanating from insurgency, banditry, kidnapping and others have made many Nigerians, including those in the diaspora, to loose hope in the country and would not even want to return home or invest in the economy.

The drummer and composer stressed that music is a universal language and the right tool that could be used to reach to different people in the polity, address serious issues and talk to policy makers and politicians directly without mincing words, saying it is the right tool to bring peace and reconciliations.

Revealing that the project is going to gulp over N300 million, Baoku added that the concert is going to be massive and would attract a lot of big and upcoming acts in the entertainment sector.

The founder of Positive Image Arts further revealed that the yearlong event would be divided into three segments — music production, music video production and WAZOBIA music production.

He informed that each stage would produce a unity song, adding that the music production stage would see artistes release songs in different languages including in pidgin, so that every could relate to the happenings in the country and come together as one.

The music video production stage will see artistes product songs that would tell the African story, Nigeria and our culture in general, while the last stage would be a generous showcase of the Nigerian art and culture, music in diverse languages and drama.

“Nigerians must come together, put our differences aside and engage the power of music as a tool for peace and unity. We are gathering some of the biggest names in the Nigerian music scene to creatively work together as one regardless their differences.

“This is a N300million project and it’s a vision from God. I left a lot of opportunities back in the US to come home to do this, so you must see how important it is. I have seen people us music, sports and arts to change their situation for good,” he remarked.

The Lagos State General Secretary of Peace Offering initiative, Fehintola Odejiide, said music, being a universal language, is the right medium to pass the message of hope to youths in the country.

She said: “Moses’ goal is to use music as a tool to show every Nigerian that we are first, human beings before Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo. This is one of the modalities to enhance peaceful co-existence in Nigeria, especially within the younger generation.”

For Azubuike Ikwazom, peace is one of the things that one cannot buy with money; it comes naturally.

According to him, peace comes when there is cooperation, consideration and good partnership, saying the peace offering project is a way to ingrain peace into the Nigerian system.