* Pita Okute













 
By Pita Okute

This, let us admit, is how we may describe Sambisa Forest: evil jungle of Northeast  Nigeria that has crept into world history as an infernal den of iniquity and mayhem. 

Yes,  there  was  a  time  when  that  huge  expanse  of  wooded  territory,  big  as  Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi States combined, sources say, evoked a bright dream  of economic progress: When the authors of the Third National Development Plan, to  date  Nigeria’s  most  ambitious  investment  outlay,  mapped  out  the  area for  its  rich  treasury of flora and fauna. 

Following on the success of Yankari, celebrated game reserve in Bauchi that 
was birthed by the First Republic, the Gowon administration wanted a louder repeat  in Sambisa to equal the famed safari spots of East and Southern Africa. 

Long live the Safari. This exotic overland adventure is the enduring magic of 
the African continent, with package tours and private trips spanning the East Coast, from Kenya through Uganda and Tanzania to Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Namibia  and  South  Africa. 

 From  patches  of  sprawling  savannah  to  thick  rain  forests,  the 
modern  safari is  a  fun  filled  encounter  with  the  African  wilds.  The  vast  array  of  animals­ buffalo,  elephants,  antelopes,  giraffes,  crocodiles,  and  the  big  cats­lions,  leopards,  cheetahs,  not  forgetting  the  wild  boar,  hippos,  rhinos,  foxes  and  game  birds of every kind­ provide visual evidence of a multi splendored world and the great  diversity of nature.

Sambisa was billed to top the Nigerian safari trail from Calabar through Ikom, 
the  Mambilla  and  Jebba  to  Bauchi  and  other  less  popular  game  reserves.  Your guess is as good as mine what became of the wild life in Sambisa, after successive  governments abandoned the project and Boko Haram found it a suitable launch pad for its dream of an Islamic republic. 

The African  Safari  used  to  be synonymous  with  big  game  hunting.  Rich 
tourists  from  around  the  world  converged  in  their  hundreds  to  track  and  kill  the animals merely for sport. Arguably, the world is wiser now about the harmful effects of  this  unconscionable  pastime.  Unregulated  hunting  of  wild  life  turned  the unfortunate  animals  to  endangered  species.  The  modern  safari­  the  word  comes from  the  Arab/Kiswahili  word  for  journey­  is  a  leisurely  encounter with  the  animal kingdom.  In  place  of  hunting rifles,  tourists  are  now armed  with cameras  for  the harmless, more  exciting  shots  of  wild  animals feasting, mating  or  simply  being themselves as they deem fit.  This ennobling aspect of the safari has spun a fashion kit in its wake­ safari 
jackets;  belted  shirts  with  four  large  pockets­  which  become  suits  when  worn  with matching pants, shorts and skirts.  No wonder then that even the Vatican thought it quite cool to label the 1980s African tour of the late Pope John Paul II as a “spiritual safari”. A book,  Safari  Style,  by  Natasha  Burns  and  Tim  Beddows, explores  the  decorative art of safari lodges around Africa.

 Taken all together, these developments have given to our world that freshening perspective on eco tourism, in which man and animals are co­heirs of a shared commonwealth.

The African Safari comes in various packages to suit individual pockets and 
preferences. Package tours are affordable and convenient. One enjoys the company of a multicast of people from different parts of the world, a kind of “safari” within a safari. Yet, it’s more fun to go independently, but always in the safe company of tour guides and game wardens whose knowledge of the reserves and the peculiar habits of their wild life can be most invaluable. 
Dollar  for  dollar,  therefore,  the safari  is  that  incomparably  exciting  and 
enlightening parley  with the  wilds for  which  there  is  yet  no  substitute. 

 That  might have  provided the  creative  sparks  for  Apple  Inc.  to  name  its  2003  web  browser, Safari. It was reputed to be the fastest browser at the time, and its net share of the market swung up then; in imitation it would seem, of the alluring drama of the African Safari. 

Clearly, Nigeria  has  missed  out  on  the  eco  tourist  potentials  of Sambisa.  When eventually, the place is reclaimed from Boko Haram and decontaminated of their  landmines, Sambisa may host  another  kind of  tour  packaging  similar  to what obtains  at  the  War  Museum  in  Umahia.  Even  so, the  development  of  the  other games  reserves  to  their  full  potential  has  been  rather  slow, what  with  our  great addiction  to  oil  as  a  major  cash  cow. Who  can  blame  Lai  Muhammad, Minister  of Information and Culture, for seeking to improve on this situation with a progressive shot at cultural tourism?
Pity, that in trying to achieve this, he fell for the heady obsession of Nigerian 
public  officials­to  wit,  their  craze  for international  events  or summit/conference tourism and safaris. Now, will his controversial China trip hold, or will it be another safari that was not?