It was fond memories at last week as the 1988/93 Set of 85-year-old Christ’s School; Ado-Ekiti celebrated the 25th anniversary of their graduation from the institution, which they described as “the school”.
The old students, clad in the white shirt on naval blue trouser uniform of the school, were all smiles at the school chapel, venue of the event, as activities for the silver jubilee of their graduation unfolded.
These included the 2018 Homecoming, the yearly Chief Olusola Bayode Scholarship awards, and inauguration of renovated four JSS 1 classrooms in the school.
Other activities for the three-day epoch-making anniversary were reunion party, novelty match, Diamond Jubilee and Gala and Award Night and a thanksgiving service.
Their former Principal, Bayode, in whose honour the scholarship award was instituted, said the graduating set was unique as the former students’ admission coincided with the 50th founders’ anniversary of the school.
National Working Committee President of 1988/93 Set, Olumide Abegunde, said the yearly scholarship schemes under three categories–merits, indigent and best students in English language from JSS1 to SSS3 “is giving back to the society that God used in moulding us over the years. It will assist the beneficiaries in their studies and as well spur others to perform better”.
The overall best students in English language category of the award, which is a new addition, which was instituted by an ‘old boy’, Mr James Bamisaiye, was received by six students covering JSS1 to SSS3.
It was yet another opportunity for the alumni to renew call for return of the school to its owners, the Anglican Communion, to facilitate development of the school and resuscitation of its ideals, culture and values.
Abegunde, who lamented that standard of the school, had fallen over time owing to government’s busy schedule, said the stakeholders-the owners, the Anglican Communion and the alumni could better manage the school.
He said: “Government has a lot of responsibilities. Education at this formative stage should be taken seriously, hence the need for stakeholders to be in charge. Anglican owns the school. Under our call for return of the school to its original owners, there is an arrangement between the old students and Anglican Communion that we are going to run this school together.
“We will raise funds, pump it to the school and as well be involved in decision-making while Anglican will bring their Godly training and Godly principle to bear on the school and students. “At present, there is infrastructural decay. Look at the structures! If you cannot have new ones, the existing ones should be standing,” he said.
Abegunde said the yearly scholarship schemes under three categories – merit, indigent and overall best students in English language from JSS1 to SSS3 “is giving back to the society that God used in moulding us over the years. It will assist the beneficiaries in their studies and as well spur others to perform better”.
Chairman Planning Committee, Sogo Ajongbolo, said the yearly event was product of the old students’ vision “that we want every child in Christ’s School to have the opportunity to succeed in life. We realised that our foundation in life was actually built in Christ’s School, hence our resolve to give back”.
The guest speaker and Vice-Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, Prof Michael Ajisafe, represented by Prof. Adeola Egbebi, who said the school had always been a pacesetter, added: “The entrepreneurship education which Christ’s School began in 1933 is now what the Federal Government is preaching”.
Ajisafe said: “The complete or total man from Christ’s School was not to be a job seeker but a provider. Thus, the school in its early days offered carpentry, block making/bricklaying, sewing, mat weaving, knitting, cattle ranching and agriculture,” among others.
Life is a hypocrite and living it is an even greater lie. It causes everyone to dance to unfamiliar rhythms and prompts a forgetfulness that is a recurrent cycle. It is factually ephemeral, and this is its realistic abstract than the concrete of the joys that we find in it. The scar from an injury may have healed, but the tortuous period of pain and pang is best described by the sufferer. Fact is, no other person can best explain a mother’s birth pain than she, who has herself laboured and later came to birth; same way as homelessness, which is not the narrative of one who dwells in palatial hacienda.
Truth has charted an unwavering cause, so that the dead can rest well where their souls are reposed, and those who are living in Judas’ denial can choose to come clean, stay dirty or have their hoary scalps interred as un-worthy sojourners to earth.
The President Who Never Ruled is the story of An African Self-Made Billionaire as written by Jamiu Abiola, the son of the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola – and his late wife Kudirat- the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993 general election in Nigeria. In a total of one hundred and ninety seven pages, forty four chapters and three parts, the writer takes the reader through a journey with a true insider perspective, one that is akin to an on-the-spot account in the heat of a warfare.
Records cannot but be set straight and as a Yoruba adage has it, lies could thrive for a thousand years, but truth will always have its day of reckon. The days of sober reflections are indeed here, as doubt and blurry vision are to receive emancipation from their hitherto shackles. The tragedy of liars and lies thrives in the delusion of decapitating truth for its sinister antonym, but unknowingly, the auto-decimation of pathological liars and all devious species of the human kind is as guaranteed as phenomenal constants
In this timely non-fiction, the author arouses our consciousness to the fact that, August 4, 2015 would have marked the 78th birthday of the Late Chief MKO Abiola, which is somewhat related to the same year he entered politics (1978); while his late wife, Kudirat Abiola would have turned 63 years, but the annulment of the June 12, 1993 elections on June 23 of the same year, by the Ibrahim Babangida led military administration leaves Nigerians with rhetorics that one hopes will soon become answered questions some day.
Jamiu Abiola rightly corrects the wrongs of near-established untruths and assumptions and does it brilliantly by piecing the past to the present, in a bid to offer, unmistakably, the Absolute Truth about his father, as well as his mother, thus providing a template of integrity and a Sanskrit of honesty for those whose zest and thirst for the unbiased account remain effervescence.
The beauty of this narrative fact takes the reader to the background of the The late Chief MKO Abiola, whose demonstration of precocious attributes strikes a chord, because such innate perception is a rarity in many of his age then and even as of now. Salawu and Zuliat Abiola-his parents- would not have asked for a greater gift from their creator, especially with the losses his parents suffered in having children, before he eventually became “something that was witnessed” (Moshood).
The author moves controllably through various stages in his father’s life and presents to the reader another era which generated huge controversies. The ITT years brought with it its grass to grace accounts, and unlike what was peddled in hushed tones and songs, the late MKO Abiola Worked hard and long as a trained accountant and as an astute businessman to attain the height he reached and made the money that was his.
His relationship with the Nigerian Military was set on course when the Ministry of Defense owed the organization he worked for –ITT- a whopping 3.5million Pounds. Having started the journey with the telecoms giants on April 1, 1969, Abiola went on to be the lifeline for the organization over a long period of success. His success at helping to repatriate company funds redefined his status, and this propelled him further towards healthier ambitions.
The persons of the former Chief of staff of the Nigerian Army, Brigadier Usman Katsina; the permanent Secretary at the ministry of Defence then, Mr. Yusuf Gobir and the Army Signals Inspector, the late Lt. Col. Murtala Mohammed featured. Each of these men played key roles in all that led to Moshood’s early breakthrough and as the saying goes, the deeds of men live with them and in-fact outlive them.
On page 70, paragraph 4, the author writes:
“… Moshood, in his thirties, became one of Africa’s richest men. His orientation changed completely afterward and his main interest became a quest for an ideological meaning to life”
It was at this juncture that his ideals emerged. He needed to do more and that he would not be stopped by any opposition in sight. Moshood may would have rested on his oars, but the poverty in the country caused him to want to do more as he was the epitome of philanthropy. Jamiu Abiola in this factual account reveals the very fabric of his father’s personality, as his weakness was in strengthening others in need.
The demise of Murtala Mohammed, an honest man resulted in another turn for ITT. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who was later the Head of State, neglected the communications firm had thrived under the headship of an administration that was accountable, but he however kept government expenditure low, which was a noted positive.
The chronicle of “The President Who Never Ruled” also examines the presidential aspiration of the acclaimed winner of the 1993 general election. Although he suffered a crushing defeat at the party’s convention in Benue while under the banner of NPN, he did not decamp. Shehu Shagari however won the election and took over the reins from Obasanjo in 1979. Having finished his first term, a second term was guaranteed for the Shehu Shagari led government, but five months into the administration it was toppled, on December 31 1983 by General Mohammadu Buhari.
On page 78, last paragraph, Abiola said of Shagari’s government:
“The fact is now glaringly evident that among the factors which contributed most significantly to the demise of the Second Republic was the absence was any objective and critical assessment of is workings while it lasted.”
The defining moments in the late MKO Abiola’s political career opened when he won at the presidential convention held on March 27, 1993. Alhaji Baba Gana Kingibe- who later vied as Abiola’s vice presidential candidate – and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar were defeated by Abiola to be the Social Democratic Party (SDP) flag bearer. Although, the late Alhaji Shehu Yar’adua supported Atiku Abubakar, his bid to have him as Abiola’s vice presidential flag bearer did not succeed, thus causing a rift between Abiola and the Yar’ardua team. It was also mentioned, that though the military gave green light in allowing democracy reign, the Head of State then, General Ibrahim Babangida wanted Pascal Bafyau, who was the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress to be Abiola’s running mate.
HOPE 93 however left many Nigerians hopeless, beginning from the appointment of Chief Tony Anenih by Alhaji Yar’ardua as SDP chairman. It must be stated, that names are as important as our legacies, which is why the role played by the likes of Arthur Nzeribe – Association for Better Nigeria; Bassey Ikpeme, who ruled that the election must not take place; Dahiru Saleh, that prevented Professor Nwosu from releasing the election result.
Former Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, under whose administration the cataclysm held sway and the inventor of the interim government scheme; to Chief Ernest Shonekan, whose inability to say no is at best treacherous to a kinsman; to Baba Gana Kingibe; who deserted his fellow flag bearer for obvious pecuniary passion; to the late General Sani Abacha, under whose machination Alfred Rewane became history, Kudirat Abiola was assassinated, Abiola incarcerated and the hope of Nigerians became concretely lacerated and mutilated. General Abdulsalami Abubakar also played a role by his refusal to release the late MKO Abiola even after other political prisoners were released from detention. This to the Abiola family has casts him in the light of those whose names and legacies must be forgotten as long as the family’s pains still linger.
Jamiu Abiola has through this work un-earthed what many Nigerians may love to forget or at best remember every twelfth day in the month of June. The impact of the huge loss of both parents on a young university graduate as of then and how this painful exit still leaves an unfilled gap in the lives of their children and Nigerians will move one to tears and sober the reader up.
It is needful to state, that the unforgettable role played by his wife, the Late Kudirat Abiola is a huge attestation to a woman, who lived her life for a just cause, her husband and thus her memory definitely indelible.
This collector’s item written in episodic plot makes for very interesting and effortless read and as the experiences shared gives the reader an unquestionable and scintillating perspective, we need to ask how we hope to be honourably remembered.
This is the honour in reverence of the late Chief MKO Abiola and his wife, Kudirat Abiola, whose impact sure resonates here on earth and in without a doubt, in the hereafter.
Emeritus Professor Tekena Tamuno’s death last Saturday invoked fond memories of his brilliance, humility and kindness. Friends and family share some with TAYO JOHNSON and SIKIRU AKINOLA in Ibadan.
The cold hands of death visited the renowned emeritus professor of History, Tekena Nitonye Tamuno on Saturday, drawing the curtains on five decades of academic excellence in History.
He was the first alumnus Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan (UI).
A former president of the Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL), Tamuno died at 83.
Since then, sympathizers, mostly fellow academic giants, former colleagues, friends and neighbours, have been thronging his Ibadan residence to commiserate with the family.
The house, tucked in the heart of Agodi Government Reserved Area (GRA) near the Oyo State Secretariat, is as simple as the deceased.
The University of Ibadan, where he schooled and taught History until his retirement, mourned an illustrious alumnus, teacher and vice chancellor.
Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Isaac Adewole, in a statement by the Registrar and Secretary to the university’s Governing Council, Mr. Olujimi Olukoya, said Tamuno made giant strides in the areas of infrastructure, staff development and academic empowerment during his tenure as Vice-Chancellor.
Adewole said Nigerians would really miss him, particularly his immediate constituency, the academic community.
“It is significant to note that “TNT”, as he was fondly called, was the first alumnus of the University of Ibadan to become its Vice-Chancellor.
“The man, Emeritus Prof. Tamuno would continue to live in the memories of the university communities, where they had the benefit of his services as the Vice-Chancellor or Pro-Chancellor, especially at the University of Ibadan where he stood out for his effective leadership” , Adewole said.
The VC further described the deceased as a brilliant scholar, renowned academic, world-class professor of History, university administrator par excellence, visionary national planner and a Nigerian who had contributed to Nigeria’s development. He said that the university honoured him with the Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) Honoris Causa at the institution’s 2014 convocation and 66th Foundation Day last November 17.
•Portraits of the late historian.
“Tamuno and the famous Ibadan School of History ignited the fire of African historical scholarship, which keeps burning well. Tamuno’s place in African historiography is cast in stone and it will always continue to be celebrated. He was a legend in African history,” Adewole said.
A former Head, Department of History, Prof. Oludayo Adesina described “TNT” or “Baba Tamuno” as he was referred to by younger scholars “who are three or four generations behind him” as a ‘gentleman-scholar’ who was dedicated to historical scholarship and humanistic studies.
“He was one of those who pioneered the famous and glorious Ibadan School of history. His footprints would remain indelible in several institutions of learning across the country and in other parts of the world; at the Institute of African Studies; the great University of Ibadan, and of course, the Nigerian Academy of Letters – the Apex Academy of Scholars in the humanities,” he said.
Adesina also appreciated the way Tamuno encouraged younger academics.
“During our training years as historians, his books and articles became our constant companions. I particularly remember him as that established and self-effacing scholar who came up to me one day in the mid-1990s to commend me for my weekly column, ‘The Diary of a Don’ in the National Concord. He told me he was one of my admirers and that had the immediate effect of lifting my spirit immeasurably. He had also written a personal letter to me when I was promoted to the rank of Professor. I was elated. He was not that kind of person who put you down with their intellectual arrogance or stand-offish attitudes. With his passing, the Nigerian academic community has not only lost a distinguished historian and academic, but also a great friend, father, and administrator. His greatest assets were his humility, his detribalized nature and his faith in humanity. He was an awe-inspiring figure. He will be sorely missed,” he said.
Another academic, Prof Tam David-West, who described Tamuno as dear friend of his, said his shoes could not be filled. He also lamented that despite his humaneness, Tamuno was not well appreciated because of tribalism in the university system.
David-West said: “He was very close to me. He was a great human being. Throughout the years I knew him, I never heard him quarrel with anyone. Nobody can step into his boots – both as a person as a scholar. He was the first UI alumnus to become vice chancellor. He did well as vice chancellor. He was supposed to return for a second term but a lot of campus groups – people who should not be in the university system – tried to pull him down. “During his valedictory speech delivered in the Trenchard Hall, he said his Swan song was: ‘All Things Bright and Beautiful; All creatures great and small, Nigeria kills them all’.
“That tradition is still continuing till today. Our universities are marred by tribalism. If a taxi driver or market woman display tribalism, it is understandable; but not academics. Pettiness and tribalism are still in the university system.
A family source, who spoke in confidence, said the late professor was principled and very humane.
He said: “Those working at the gate and the drivers can testify to this. They can die for him. To him, they were his children. He was someone who did not care about where you came from; he did not discriminate. He had friends everywhere. He looked at people as human beings,” he said.
The source said as vice-chancellor Tamuno did not allow his children to switch on the light unnecessarily despite the fact that they were not paying.
“He would put a note ‘put off the light’. You could not put the fan on unnecessarily. When we were about to sleep, he would say, ‘It is all over; no light for the night.’”
The source also said that the deceased never used his official car for unofficial events. He even bought a ‘keke elemu’ (bicycle used by palmwine tappers) for his eldest son.
“The eldest son was at the International School, while the second one was in a primary school. He had two official cars – one Mercedez and a Peugeot 504; and a Volvo. He would ask his driver to park his official car and take his private car to pick the youngest son while he bought a bicycle for his eldest son to be using as a means of transportation. People used to make jest of the boy, saying, ‘how can a son of the VC use a bicycle?’ That was his character. He was not concerned about what people are saying. He would say ‘This is my own life; I don’t need to live like anybody,’” he said.
On why he did not have many houses to show his status in the society, the source explained: “The position of a VC is not like that of a local government chairman. He was content with what he had. Even when he retired, he used his car for more than 20 years until we told him throw it away and get a new one.”
The source said that though the family wanted him to live longer, Tamuno was ready to leave when he did and had already chosen his burial place.
“Whenever I told him that he has more years to live, he would say no, that a lot of his friends have gone,” he said.
Born on January 28, 1932, in Okrika, Rivers State, the late Tamuno studied History at the University of Ibadan from 1953 – 1958 before leaving Nigeria to study at the University of London and Columbia University. In 1963, he joined the Department of History at Ibadan where he rose to become a professor in 1971.
At UI, Tamuno served as Head of History Department (1972-1975); Dean, Faculty of Arts (1973-1975), and Vice-Chancellor (1975-1979).
He was the pioneer Principal of the University of Ilorin when that institution began as a university college of Ibadan.
The late emeritus Tamuno served as Chancellor, Redeemers University; Chairman of the Presidential Panel on National Security (October 2001-December 2002), and Panel on Policing Nigeria Project (2002-2003).
He was a recipient of the national honour of the Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) and Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Letters (FNAL).
Tamuno is survived by his wife and four children – two boys and two girls.”
Anambra State indigenes gathered at the Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka, the state capital, for a grand rally in honour of the late Ezeigbo, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu. ODOGWU EMEKA ODOGWU was there.
IKEMBA Nnewi Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, died on November 26, 2011. He was buried on March 2, last year. One year after he was laid to rest, indigenes of Anambra State gathered last Saturday to celebrate him. Ojukwu led Easterners to a Civil War in 1963.
The young, the old, rich and poor, business moguls and politicians converged on the Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka to honour the late Ojukwu.
In a colourful ceremony tagged mother of all rallies, groups under the banner of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) wore special clothes to make them unique. There were different Ankara fabrics bearing the late Ojukwu’s portrait. Others carried the portraits of Governor Peter Obi and the late Ojukwu.
As early as 8am, hawkers had started thronging the rally ground. APGA members came in motorcades.
Before noon, the stipulated time for the event, all the canopies and the over 25,000 capacity square was filled to capacity. The mammoth crowd stretched as far as the eyes can see.
Every available space was filled with all sorts of vehicles. Motorcycles, bicycles and tricycles also found space in the parking lot. Dignitaries walked up majestically to the podium. Security officials prevented the surging crowd from assessing the podium; Many stood at the edge of the podium watching.
Ojukwu’s widow, Bianca, the Nigerian Ambassador to Spain spoke in Igbo language.
She said: “Today marks one year that my husband and our National Leader was bid farewell. I thank all of you that made today possible. This rally is a wonderful one.
”Nobody can remove our flag from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Don’t allow this party to die and don’t allow this party to be put to shame.”
Bianca condemned the destruction of Ojukwu’s Library at Owerre by unknown persons.
Governor Obi, the National Deputy Leader of APGA read some resolutions by the party members.
The date for the rally was chosen, according to Obi, to coincide with the first anniversary of Ojukwu’s passage.
He said it was an opportunity to celebrate Ojukwu for what he was to the Igbo people and to invoke his spirit to continue to guide APGA.
In attendance were: Anambra State Deputy Governor Emeka Sibeudu; Speaker, House of Assembly, Chinwe Nwebili; Deputy Speaker Chukwudi Orizu; Dr. Tim Menakaya; former Minister of Information Prof. Dora Akunyili; Ambassador Odi Nwosu; Mr Obinna Obiegue; Ochiagha Reagan Ufomba; Hon Chuma Nzeribe; Chief Chris Uche; Alhaji Garba Barne; Evengelist Chinyere Okeke; Bernad Akoma; Sunday Obaslam; Chief Dickson Osu; Tondo Joseph; Ella Nwabueze; Ferguson Okpara; Hon. E.A Shonubi; Dr. Gbenga Afeni; Abubakar Adamu; Dr. Sagir Auwal Maidigu; Lawal Barma; Alfred Nwosu; Dr. Isa Jiga; Mrs Victoria Oyeng; Ambassador Frank Ogwuewu; Chief Reagan Ofomba; Hon. Okey Udeh and Chief Okey Ezeibe.
The remains of Madam Esther Olufunke Somefun have been interred in Lagos. A service of songs was held at the Saviour’s African Church Cathedral, Agege, a Lagos suburb. AMIDU ARIJE writes.
The children of the late Madam Esther Olufunke Somefun, have celebrated what they call the good life of their mother who died at 89.
Eulogising the virtues of the late Madam Somefun, they described her as a mother to all, very loving and caring.
The funeral service was presided over by the Primate of the African Church, Rev Emmanuel Udofia, who extolled her virtues.
Guests converged on the Lagos State University (LASU) Museum field at Pen Cinema, Agege, Lagos, for entertainment. It was a big bash.
Five large tents were erected on the field. Guests stepped in, impressive and resplendent in their flower-patterned Ankara uniform of different styles.
The children left no stone unturned in ensuring their mother had a befitting burial, having trained them to be disciplined, honest and fear of God.
At the reception was the Band of Faith Music led by Ayo Ajekigbe.
One after the other, each child of the deceased was called out to the dance floor.
Taiwo described his mother as an epitome of humility and honesty.
“Today, I celebrate her life and what she stood for: humility, contentment, hardwork, discipline and prudence. She was the foundation of the family who led with diplomacy. She will remain an important piece of a final puzzle in our hearts.”
Mrs Funke Ogundimu said she would miss her mother. She said her mother’s exit is painful.
In attendance were Chairman, Agege Local Government, Alhaji Abdul Kareem Jubril; Deputy Director at the Federal Institute of Research Oshodi (FIIRO), Dr Okeowo and his Director General Dr Gloria Elemo; Mrs Dupe Faworaja; Mrs Olabisi Obaseki; Chief Stephen Adeseun; Mrs Doyin Olaitan; Chief Felix Kokumo and Director General Nigeria Natural Medicine Agency (NNMA), Mr Tamunoibuomui Okusagu, among others.
