Fire & Memory: COOU English Department Celebrates the Poetry of James Eze

Awka, Anambra State — Wednesday, February 11, 2026

The Department of English, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University (COOU), Igbariam Campus, has announced a major literary event titled Fire & Memory: Celebrating the Poetry of James Eze, a tribute to one of contemporary Nigeria’s most compelling poetic voices and to his acclaimed collection, Dispossessed.

Scheduled for Wednesday, February 11, 2026, at 3:00 p.m., the event will hold at Mr Smith Hotel, Awka (opposite the former Government House). The programme brings together scholars, cultural leaders, artists, students, and members of the public in a reflective engagement with poetry, memory, identity, and artistic courage.

The occasion will be chaired by Dr. Nelson Omenugha, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor of Anambra State on Youth Empowerment Programme, while Comrade Peter Nwosu (Sir Pee), Chairman of the Peter NUPENG Group of Companies, will serve as Special Guest.

Also featured as a Special Guest Artist is Mr. Tony Odili Ujubuonu, Managing Director/CEO of the Anambra State Signage and Advertisement Agency (ANSAA).

Distinguished respondents for the event include leading scholars of African and world literatures:

Prof. Chimalum Nwankwo (Ndi Mmuo), Professor of English, African, African-American, and World Literatures

Prof. Echezona Ifejirika (Ogbuonyaraagu I of Umuchu), Professor of English, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Igbariam and

Prof. Chike Okoye (Ududo), Professor of Poetry and Postcolonial Literatures, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.

Through readings, critical responses, and conversations, Fire & Memory examines Dispossessed as a work of rare imaginative force—one that confronts displacement, loss, history, and hope with lyrical precision and moral clarity. The event underscores the Department’s commitment to fostering rigorous literary culture and deepening students’ engagement with modern African poetry.

Fire & Memory is expected to introduce students more deeply to Eze’s poetic craft, thematic concerns, and stylistic innovations, while inspiring emerging voices within the university community.

Speaking on the forthcoming celebration, Dr. Ikechukwu Asika, Head of the Department of English and host of the event, described Dispossessed as “a luminous contribution to contemporary African poetry—one that gives language to difficult truths and resonates far beyond the personal into the collective experience.”

Fire & Memory promises to be both an intellectual gathering and a cultural homage—affirming poetry’s enduring power to remember, resist, and reimagine.

For further enquiries:

Department of English

Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam Campus