USAID
Ambassador Symington (right) greets musician and philanthropist Innocent “2Baba” Idibia at the launch along with
U.S. Consul General F. John Bray (second left) and USAID Mission Director Stephen M. Haykin (second right)
the social, humanitarian and moral
challenges that bedevil communities in
the northeast whose inhabitants have
experienced violent extremism.
“We’re here today to make sure
this message gets out, to make sure
this story becomes your story,” U.S.
Ambassador W. Stuart Symington said
at a gala launch of the series running
on two national networks beginning
in the month of April. “It’s a universal
story about love bringing people
together.”
In Love and Ashes stars Charles
Etubiebi as Emeka, a Lagos-based
humanitarian assistance administrator
who makes the 750-mile trip to check
the accounts of its Maiduguri office –
not knowing what he will encounter in
the remote corner of his own country.
What he finds are people in whom he
recognizes a common human spirit as
they struggle to make the best of their
lives under the untenable stress of
conflict, violence, and deprivation.
“Everybody knows what the
insurgency did to the Northeast,” series
director Ali Mustapha explained. “But it
also addresses the issue of prejudice.”
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CROSSROADS | May/June 2018
“In Love and Ashes” touches on other
kinds of prejudice as well. It tells the
story of Maryam, a northeastern
woman who struggles to pursue a
career as a photographer against her
family’s wish that she get married as
soon as she is of age. Nafisat Abdullahi,
who plays Maryam, said with a shrug
that as a Hausa woman herself, she can
relate. For its soundtrack, In Love and Ashes
harnessed the star power of Innocent
“2Baba” Idibia, who contributed the
series’ soundtrack, produced by
NowMuzik. A video directed by award-
winning Unlimited LA-featured clips
teased the series with a montage of
clips interspersed with the musician-
entrepreneur’s performance of the
track.
We also meet Mallam Laminu, a
hard-working taxi driver who wants
nothing more than to provide his son a
good education and raise a responsible
citizen. “Unfortunately for Laminu,
the boy’s mind was not in studies,” said
Tijani Faraga, who plays Laminu. “But
the temptation of most of the youth in
a terrorist haven is to join the dreaded
Boko Haram group. Eventually he lost
his only son. Unfortunately that is
what many parents in these areas face
today.” At the launch, 2Baba spoke with
disarming frankness about the need
for north and south to come together.
“This is a beautiful movement,” he said.
“I hope as Nigerians we can get in the
spirit and wake up from our slumber.
We have to stop being naïve. We have
to stop being ignorant... We must be
geared toward creative peace.”
For producer Ishaku Dashon, the story
sends a core message that through all
the violence, hardship and death, these
characters share the common Nigerian
qualities of strength and resilience.
“Despite the tragedy, they are able to
find hope, and find love,” he said.
In his remarks, Ambassador Symington
likened Nigeria to a giant heart,
divided into three chambers by the
mighty rivers that run through it. The
Ambassador’s intuition, honed through
a long diplomatic career in Africa, tells
him that despite the vast distances and
cultures that constitute the country,
Nigerians are – and will continue to be
– one people.