Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, will on March 16 chair a conference in honour of renowned poet and polemicist, Odia Ofeimun.
In a statement on Monday signed by Jahman Anikulapo, the planning committee said events marking the celebration would hold on March 16 and 17.
The conference will be held at Julius Berger Hall of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) campus.
The celebration will end with a special dinner in honour of the celebrant on the evening of March 17 at the Hall of the University of Lagos Guest House.
The Odia Ofeimun-at-70 conference will be a gathering of intellectuals, scholars and academics from within Nigeria, Africa, North America and Europe, the statement said.
The keynote will be given by Professor Biodun Jeyifo, a reputed literary scholar and globally recognised cultural theorist, who until recently was with Harvard University in the United States of America.
Civil rights activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olisa Agbakoba, will chair the dinner on March 17.
A foremost poet, journalist, dance-drama producer, critic, columnist and public intellectual, Ofeimun has been actively involved in the Nigerian cultural, creative, intellectual and political space for over four decades.
He served as private secretary to Obafemi Awolowo, the late Nigerian nationalist and politician between 1978 and 1981; was a member of the editorial board of The Guardian from 1983 to 1988, chairman of the editorial board of The News, Tempo and AM News from 1993 to 1999, and president of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) from 1993 to 1997.
Ofeimun has close to 40 published books to his name; they include volumes of poetry, collections of critical essays, anthologies of cultural and political interventions, and compilations of journalistic writings.
In 2010, he won the Fonlon Nichols award for excellence in writing and human rights activism.
