Imo State Commissioner for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Mazi Uche Ohia has charged the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Imo State Chapter, to plan and execute ‘Imo Music Festival’.
Ohia said the festival will help to promote tourism, give opportunity to Imo music idols to connect with their fans, and make the music industry vibrant.
He gave the charge in his office when a delegation of the Performing Musicians visited him.
The commissioner stated, “We need action from PMAN, a whole week music festival in Imo so that we have our icons like Onyeka Onwenu and Dansatch perform to the admiration of many; we have local heroes and we should build them up.
“The Uzodimma administration is working on strategic partnerships with every collective like communities and groups like PMAN, come up with a committee to put together Imo Music Festival as the biggest music show in the country”.
Assuring PMAN of the dividends of partnering with his Ministry, Ohia said “Highlife and Bongo music is a big industry for our people and we will promote and market our musicians.
“Imo State Government has shown in no uncertain terms its determination to retain the state as home of hospitality; the governor has put security as non-negotiable, he gives security the priority attention it deserves and that has ensured that tourism is not disrupted in Imo”.
The commissioner noted that “PMAN enjoys a very powerful heritage built by a generation of great artistes; Imo has a heritage of everlasting music; Oriental Brothers, Joe Nez, Peacocks all have evergreen songs.
“Before them, Israel Nwoba Njemanze was the indisputable king of highlife music in Lagos. He was so good and popular but was murdered, unfortunately.”
Earlier, the leader of the delegation and Governor of Imo Chapter of Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria, Bismarck Ekeocha, told the commissioner that the association visited to discuss how the music industry in Imo State could be revived.
Ekeocha who said musicians were prepared to support the Uzodimma administration by projecting its programmes through songs, added that “Imo musicians are together, we don’t have any division.”
