AfricaSanta Takes To The Streets

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President, National Association of Theatre Arts Practitioners, Mr. Tunde Obalana and the Managing Director, Lucent Consulting Nigeria Ltd, Lampe Omoyele unveiling the SantaTreat logo… in Lagos

The usual experience of families, especially children who visit Santa Claus, popularly known as Father Christmas, is set to change as Santa Treat makes its maiden appearance. It is coming with a new television programme that will set a new template for the concept of “SANTA CLAUS”.

In its place, an African Santa Claus will be on the streets, going to homes and showering people with gift items all through December. The media unveiling of Santa Treat, which was hosted by Bespoke Event and Management Company, and Optic7ven Solutions Limited in partnership with DSB media, is a platform to commence thePROMOTION and celebration of a historic programme package, an initiative that is designed to revolutionise the celebration of Christmas not only in Nigeria, but also in Africa and across the globe. It highlights the ingenuity of Nigerians as a people, as the brand story of the concept exemplifies.

The half-hour television unveiling featured scenes like: talk with AfriSanta, where Santa and a presenter engages on topical Christmas issues, street reel, a vox pop session, and courtesy visit by AfricaSanta with goodies to homes and a goodwill message from brands and sponsors.

Africa Santa on the way to Nigerian homes, according to Mr. Israel Eboh, line producer of the television programme, explores the need to come up with a truly Nigeria content that would tell the rich communal life of African people as one of the reasons African Santa came up.

“We wanted to come up with a concept that is truly Nigerian,” he said. “So, in the course of our research, we discovered that all over the world societies have different ways of celebrating their own concept of Santa. But there was nothing truly African, to say the least, Nigeria.”

Eboh noted that unlike the general norm, where people pay to the conventional Santa Claus and get gifts, “the idea of Santa is the one that showcases the communal way of life and spirit of Africans, and indeed Nigerians,” and emphasised that “This Santa goes out of his way, identifies people in need and puts a smile on their faces with the goodie bags with a lot of gift items.

There will also be a red ball event, where funds will be raised for the less privilege.”

Bespoke’s Operation Manager, Chioma Chukwulozie, said, “The innovative twist of the concept Santa Treat is the claim that the ‘AfriSanta’ is a custodian of an age-old secret of generosity, on the basis of a series of well-tailored, seamless, enthralling, entertaining, educative, informative and reformative television programming that will be anchored by an African, designed to address values, beliefs, and perceptions about Christmas, and issues that affect and impact on our everyday lives as individuals, a people, and race.”

Also expressing delight on the television programme, distinguished thespian, and president of National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP), Babatunde Obalana, said Santa Treat’s unique selling point was the idea to celebrate Christmas in a different way and in Africa contexts.

Source: The Guardian

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