Gbenro Adesina
Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL), has announced with regret, the passage of a foremost African poet, Prof. John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo, who died on Tuesday October 13, 2020.
According to a statement signed by NAL Secretary, Professor Ayobami Kehinde, the deceased was a canonical lyrical poet, whose poetry celebrates the ecological features of Africa.
The statement reads in parts:
“The President, Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL), Professor Francis Egbokhare, regrets to announce the transition of Prof. John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo, a Distinguished Foundation Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Letters.
“Born April 6 1935 in Kiagbodo, Delta State, Nigeria, Professor John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo was a canonical lyrical poet, whose poetry celebrates the ecological features of Africa. He was also a journalist, playwright, and scholar-critic who conducted research into traditional Ijaw myths and legends and wrote essays on African poetry. Clark founded The Horn, a magazine of student poetry, while at the University of Ibadan as a student. He is the author of several poems and plays.
“Professor John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo will be sorely missed by the creative and intellectual humanistic community.
“May his soul rest in peace. Amen”.
