[Music]
[Music]
good morning everybody my name is Hamza
Atta I’m an African I’m a Nigerian but I
haven’t Arabic name why do I have an
Arabic name and I wonder how many people
in the audience here have Arabic or
English or German or whatever names I
think it it goes to the root of the
identity crisis that we have here in in
Africa I’m a manufacturer I produce
polystyrene polystyrene is foam it is I
use it to build houses affordable houses
I use it for insulation and I use it to
create monumental and commercial works
of art are chosen to be part of this
productive and this creative part of our
economy you know and this has taken me
on a journey on a journey through the
political social and economic underbelly
of this country Nigeria and I have the
scars to prove it
my father was a career diplomat so I
have the unique experience of really
growing up in Nigeria and then growing
up in many other countries but when I
was and my father would might my my
worldview was was was formed watching
this man and this woman in the service
of Nigeria in countries that they were
representing the country and my father
would always tell the whole family that
all of us were representing Nigeria and
we shouldn’t forget that everything we
have now is as a result of Nigeria and
we should make sure that we pay Nigeria
back for what Nigeria had done for us so
this is what sculpted me this is what
was in my DNA when I was growing up now
when I was 13 my father was ambassador
in Cuba and at that time you know I was
getting closer to my old levels and a
level so he decided I should go off to
boarding school
so that they wouldn’t this nomadic
lifestyle of of the diplomats would not
if effect my education further initially
I was supposed to go to the next Island
which was Jamaica but by the time he sat
down with his colleagues and they told
him that ah Jamaica
Jah Rastafari your song will start to
smoke some God just something like this
so it mean you know I was no I ended up
in cold damp rural England now arriving
there I remember driving up the driveway
of the school and desperately looking
out for a black face something to belong
to you know from this diplomatic life
you’re always a new face in a new place
so even getting to settle is a problem I
didn’t see anybody I was the only black
e Sambo walk in this place you know for
those of you who don’t know these terms
in the in the 70s these were just common
terms for black people it was normal I
mean I remember the first or second day
that I was there there were the grounds
man he was named his name was JB and he
saw this little black guy running around
in there in their beautiful white public
school and he said come here lad so I
ran up to him he said what’s your name
dead and I said my name is Hamza
he said Hamza Hansen and I said Hamza
loser because oh that’s too bloody hard
I think I call you Enric you know and so
all the time I was there I was always I
was I was called Henry by this poor old
chap but you know I I found my way of
this social order by excelling in sports
and I had this passion for arts
rugby in particular the sport that I was
very good at and rugby is a game of pure
discipline and teamwork you know you
become a member of a brothers in arms
you are bound together and you depend on
each other
so from excelling in this sport I got
accepted into this place but you know as
my as my education was progressing my
father who was paying all those pounds
was like my friend these rugby are
playing you better stop that nonsense
and you break your neck I will not take
care of you and that you’re painting you
painting you will die who is going to
take care of you with dispensing he
better guns study law my friend so I
said okay sir and I went and studied law
now it was about fear it was about fear
and obedience I went and studied law but
throughout my university career I kept
on playing and I got signed up by a club
called Wigan rugby league now we can
rebel Eve gave me a forty thousand pound
contract and that in today’s naira is
about twenty million naira I was 22
years old because I was good and what I
was doing but I couldn’t accept I said
ah I can’t tell my father that I even I
get me a job in a law firm so they got
me a job in a law firm and I lived my
dream playing for the best team in the
world he was like playing for Manchester
United or Chelsea but nobody knew and
nobody cared only me but I was afraid I
was afraid so after a year I thought my
father said look this is not your
calling rugby is not a serious career
what you have to do is you have to come
back and serve your country and that’s
how I felt I really felt that it to
competin yet to come and do something so
I left I came back but I knew from
working in that law firm for a year
that’s I didn’t want law I arrived in
Lagos family welcoming committee so when
I use that in law school hey yeah I’ll
go into law school ah can you eat how
big bread can you eat a big bread you
want to be half big lawyer my friend you
are going to law school so up I went
when I graduated my father was you know
African parent this is my son he’s a
liar
you know but me I was confused I was
lost I was disconnected from my passions
and I didn’t know what to do fortunately
my sister was an interior designer and
produced furniture but with little
artisans so we set up a production line
together and she did the interior design
I handled the production process that’s
how I got to understand how to produce
and how to project manage as the thing
was taking off the government decided to
remove the ban on the importation of
furniture so what happens next
everybody starts importing we cannot
compete we don’t have the infrastructure
in idea to compete with machine made
much products from all around the
country so I jumped ship and I started
importing furniture instead but no
add-on value all I was doing was
creating jobs for foreigners meanwhile
all around me Nigerians were living in
squalor and were jobless so I started
researching building to supplement the
furniture and I found this polystyrene
building system lights insulated easy to
use I was ecstatic raised money bought a
factory and project to Abuja here I
thought that I would not be able to cope
with the demand from the federal and
state governments my god
what a shock to the system how naive I
was I got that powerless feeling again
you know and what can I tell you these
guys they just put in obstacles they put
obstacles in your way so that when you
want to come and invest in this place
you are not actually able to invest
properly
I had to diversify we have to think out
of the box the interest was running so
we started producing insulation we
started producing bean bags we started
producing pieces of Arts for monumental
and for commercial use and that took me
back to where I could have started from
as a young kid if I wanted to do my arts
this is what had come out now the music
that I came in dancing to was Fela a
nickel a polka team Fela is arguably the
most famous Nigerian in the world when I
went talk to university to study
medicine and he said you know what I
ain’t doing this I’m doing music and you
know I had this disconnection with this
guy I used to go to shrine you know and
dance you know to fella all the girls
were there then you see those women on
the stage talking ah what do you become
tracking now we’re watching but we
started listening to what Fela was
saying we were all just dancing to the
music he was
telling us about our leaders he was
telling us that these people are not
here to progress us they’re gonna
shackle us the way that the colonial
masters came and shackled us so it’s all
about them exclusive systems for them
extractive systems for them and we stand
by and we watch we’re not involved in
this in we’re not involved in the system
and they say Oh Nigeria is so big you
can’t run it properly but look at this
chocolate bar look at this chocolate bar
what do we get we get 3% we get 3% by
selling cocoa 3 everybody else get the
other 97% Switzerland is famous for
chocolate they don’t own cocoa so
imagine what could happen if we were
producing here
just imagine the power our crude oil is
the same if you imagine 3% crude oil
we’re not in control of our destinies
but look at an India look at India today
what do they do differently from us they
produce they were colonized by the
British but they didn’t take their
British names they kept – they kept what
they had they kept their language Hindi
they kept their religions they kept
their names they know who they are now
all of us here in this audience we are
Nigeria we cannot abdicate
responsibility for the way that Nigeria
is today we cannot now let me ask you
are you registered to vote
show me show me your hands who’s
registered to vote here look at if not
even 1/4 of us are registered to vote do
you know who your senatorial
representative is do you know what to do
if you actually want to run for
government do you know what to do we are
not powerless so what are we doing
please repeat after me we are not
powerless so I want everybody here to
engage we need to engage we need to go
and educate ourselves we need to educate
ourselves about the rules especially the
political rules because it’s only when
we understand these rules
that we’ll be able to go and break them
break them and get involved and if we
get involved and we and we fail it’s
okay because these guys are experts in
this game now if we try again we are
more intelligent than 3/4 of them
because they don’t even understand the
import of collectives personal interest
we will win now I know that all of us
are religious God D where are my words
God D we thank God no condition is
permanent ego better Allah in Jesus name
Amen
listen all the poorest countries in the
world are the most religious okay God
helped those people who help themselves
we need to put efforts into what we need
or what we want to do otherwise nobody
don’t make a mistake nobody is gonna
cede power to us in the game of Thrones
you know the game of Thrones right you
watch it it’s real okay
now I love Nigeria I’m mad about Nigeria
mad because I don’t like what I
experience every day and mad because I
love it and I love Hollywood and I love
all the creative artists and I applaud
all those farmers and miners who have
gotten it together and I doing export
great stuff but I want you to look at
yourselves let’s look at each other
okay let’s understand how guilty we are
in not participating so please get out
there today get out there today and get
involved join a political party join a
political group okay and let us make
this the Nigeria that we can all be
proud of I’m mad about Nigeria as I’ve
told you what about you thank you
[Applause]
you
[Music]
[Music]
good morning everybody my name is Hamza
Atta I’m an African I’m a Nigerian but I
haven’t Arabic name why do I have an
Arabic name and I wonder how many people
in the audience here have Arabic or
English or German or whatever names I
think it it goes to the root of the
identity crisis that we have here in in
Africa I’m a manufacturer I produce
polystyrene polystyrene is foam it is I
use it to build houses affordable houses
I use it for insulation and I use it to
create monumental and commercial works
of art are chosen to be part of this
productive and this creative part of our
economy you know and this has taken me
on a journey on a journey through the
political social and economic underbelly
of this country Nigeria and I have the
scars to prove it
my father was a career diplomat so I
have the unique experience of really
growing up in Nigeria and then growing
up in many other countries but when I
was and my father would might my my
worldview was was was formed watching
this man and this woman in the service
of Nigeria in countries that they were
representing the country and my father
would always tell the whole family that
all of us were representing Nigeria and
we shouldn’t forget that everything we
have now is as a result of Nigeria and
we should make sure that we pay Nigeria
back for what Nigeria had done for us so
this is what sculpted me this is what
was in my DNA when I was growing up now
when I was 13 my father was ambassador
in Cuba and at that time you know I was
getting closer to my old levels and a
level so he decided I should go off to
boarding school
so that they wouldn’t this nomadic
lifestyle of of the diplomats would not
if effect my education further initially
I was supposed to go to the next Island
which was Jamaica but by the time he sat
down with his colleagues and they told
him that ah Jamaica
Jah Rastafari your song will start to
smoke some God just something like this
so it mean you know I was no I ended up
in cold damp rural England now arriving
there I remember driving up the driveway
of the school and desperately looking
out for a black face something to belong
to you know from this diplomatic life
you’re always a new face in a new place
so even getting to settle is a problem I
didn’t see anybody I was the only black
e Sambo walk in this place you know for
those of you who don’t know these terms
in the in the 70s these were just common
terms for black people it was normal I
mean I remember the first or second day
that I was there there were the grounds
man he was named his name was JB and he
saw this little black guy running around
in there in their beautiful white public
school and he said come here lad so I
ran up to him he said what’s your name
dead and I said my name is Hamza
he said Hamza Hansen and I said Hamza
loser because oh that’s too bloody hard
I think I call you Enric you know and so
all the time I was there I was always I
was I was called Henry by this poor old
chap but you know I I found my way of
this social order by excelling in sports
and I had this passion for arts
rugby in particular the sport that I was
very good at and rugby is a game of pure
discipline and teamwork you know you
become a member of a brothers in arms
you are bound together and you depend on
each other
so from excelling in this sport I got
accepted into this place but you know as
my as my education was progressing my
father who was paying all those pounds
was like my friend these rugby are
playing you better stop that nonsense
and you break your neck I will not take
care of you and that you’re painting you
painting you will die who is going to
take care of you with dispensing he
better guns study law my friend so I
said okay sir and I went and studied law
now it was about fear it was about fear
and obedience I went and studied law but
throughout my university career I kept
on playing and I got signed up by a club
called Wigan rugby league now we can
rebel Eve gave me a forty thousand pound
contract and that in today’s naira is
about twenty million naira I was 22
years old because I was good and what I
was doing but I couldn’t accept I said
ah I can’t tell my father that I even I
get me a job in a law firm so they got
me a job in a law firm and I lived my
dream playing for the best team in the
world he was like playing for Manchester
United or Chelsea but nobody knew and
nobody cared only me but I was afraid I
was afraid so after a year I thought my
father said look this is not your
calling rugby is not a serious career
what you have to do is you have to come
back and serve your country and that’s
how I felt I really felt that it to
competin yet to come and do something so
I left I came back but I knew from
working in that law firm for a year
that’s I didn’t want law I arrived in
Lagos family welcoming committee so when
I use that in law school hey yeah I’ll
go into law school ah can you eat how
big bread can you eat a big bread you
want to be half big lawyer my friend you
are going to law school so up I went
when I graduated my father was you know
African parent this is my son he’s a
liar
you know but me I was confused I was
lost I was disconnected from my passions
and I didn’t know what to do fortunately
my sister was an interior designer and
produced furniture but with little
artisans so we set up a production line
together and she did the interior design
I handled the production process that’s
how I got to understand how to produce
and how to project manage as the thing
was taking off the government decided to
remove the ban on the importation of
furniture so what happens next
everybody starts importing we cannot
compete we don’t have the infrastructure
in idea to compete with machine made
much products from all around the
country so I jumped ship and I started
importing furniture instead but no
add-on value all I was doing was
creating jobs for foreigners meanwhile
all around me Nigerians were living in
squalor and were jobless so I started
researching building to supplement the
furniture and I found this polystyrene
building system lights insulated easy to
use I was ecstatic raised money bought a
factory and project to Abuja here I
thought that I would not be able to cope
with the demand from the federal and
state governments my god
what a shock to the system how naive I
was I got that powerless feeling again
you know and what can I tell you these
guys they just put in obstacles they put
obstacles in your way so that when you
want to come and invest in this place
you are not actually able to invest
properly
I had to diversify we have to think out
of the box the interest was running so
we started producing insulation we
started producing bean bags we started
producing pieces of Arts for monumental
and for commercial use and that took me
back to where I could have started from
as a young kid if I wanted to do my arts
this is what had come out now the music
that I came in dancing to was Fela a
nickel a polka team Fela is arguably the
most famous Nigerian in the world when I
went talk to university to study
medicine and he said you know what I
ain’t doing this I’m doing music and you
know I had this disconnection with this
guy I used to go to shrine you know and
dance you know to fella all the girls
were there then you see those women on
the stage talking ah what do you become
tracking now we’re watching but we
started listening to what Fela was
saying we were all just dancing to the
music he was
telling us about our leaders he was
telling us that these people are not
here to progress us they’re gonna
shackle us the way that the colonial
masters came and shackled us so it’s all
about them exclusive systems for them
extractive systems for them and we stand
by and we watch we’re not involved in
this in we’re not involved in the system
and they say Oh Nigeria is so big you
can’t run it properly but look at this
chocolate bar look at this chocolate bar
what do we get we get 3% we get 3% by
selling cocoa 3 everybody else get the
other 97% Switzerland is famous for
chocolate they don’t own cocoa so
imagine what could happen if we were
producing here
just imagine the power our crude oil is
the same if you imagine 3% crude oil
we’re not in control of our destinies
but look at an India look at India today
what do they do differently from us they
produce they were colonized by the
British but they didn’t take their
British names they kept – they kept what
they had they kept their language Hindi
they kept their religions they kept
their names they know who they are now
all of us here in this audience we are
Nigeria we cannot abdicate
responsibility for the way that Nigeria
is today we cannot now let me ask you
are you registered to vote
show me show me your hands who’s
registered to vote here look at if not
even 1/4 of us are registered to vote do
you know who your senatorial
representative is do you know what to do
if you actually want to run for
government do you know what to do we are
not powerless so what are we doing
please repeat after me we are not
powerless so I want everybody here to
engage we need to engage we need to go
and educate ourselves we need to educate
ourselves about the rules especially the
political rules because it’s only when
we understand these rules
that we’ll be able to go and break them
break them and get involved and if we
get involved and we and we fail it’s
okay because these guys are experts in
this game now if we try again we are
more intelligent than 3/4 of them
because they don’t even understand the
import of collectives personal interest
we will win now I know that all of us
are religious God D where are my words
God D we thank God no condition is
permanent ego better Allah in Jesus name
Amen
listen all the poorest countries in the
world are the most religious okay God
helped those people who help themselves
we need to put efforts into what we need
or what we want to do otherwise nobody
don’t make a mistake nobody is gonna
cede power to us in the game of Thrones
you know the game of Thrones right you
watch it it’s real okay
now I love Nigeria I’m mad about Nigeria
mad because I don’t like what I
experience every day and mad because I
love it and I love Hollywood and I love
all the creative artists and I applaud
all those farmers and miners who have
gotten it together and I doing export
great stuff but I want you to look at
yourselves let’s look at each other
okay let’s understand how guilty we are
in not participating so please get out
there today get out there today and get
involved join a political party join a
political group okay and let us make
this the Nigeria that we can all be
proud of I’m mad about Nigeria as I’ve
told you what about you thank you
[Applause]
you
[Music]
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