.By Abdu Labaran Malumfashi.
31-7-2025.
Nigeria is a country unfortunately ‘blessed’ with lots of fraudsters, illiterates and jingoists, as well as their ilks, in the corridors of power. And more often, they are the ones who call the shots on these shores, with the beleaguered citizens constantly doing nothing but complaining about the bad situation they have found themselves in.
Beginning from the top of the hierarchy, down to the praise singers, Nigeria is full of characters who make progress and advancement of the country well neigh impossible. There are many fraudsters who were nowhere near a university, but proclaim themselves as ‘lofty degrees holders’, alleged drug users and pushers, religious and tribal jingoists, as well as those whose only qualification is the ability to praise sing for those in the position of stolen power in the country.
In the Nigeria of today, one does not have to go to school, does not have to have any form of society-beneficial education, does not have to add any value to the society or be of useful utility to the citizens, ALL someone NEEDS to be very IMPORTANT in the society under President Tinubu, is to acquire ILLEGAL money in hundreds of millions of dollars, tucked away in some bank under a false identity. One is then accorded undue recognition as an ‘influential’ person in the country.
And since many of them are fraudsters, illiterates and jingoists of many hues, they have no respect for education, whether lower or tertiary. University and other tertiary institutions’s lecturers, including professors, can hardly afford the basics of life for their families, while illiterate praise singers in Nigeria lead the life that millionaires elsewhere would envy. Not appreciating the value of education, they abuse the system and those who go through it any which way they can, and heavens will not fall.
But when some of them were struggling to attain their present VIP status, they were always mounting the ‘NO’ podium against any government policy that was not likely to advance their SELFISH agenda, even if it was genuinely intended for public interest. The renaming of some well established and well known public institutions like universities, was vehemently REJECTED by them, ONLY for them to do the exact same, or even worse than that. When there was an attempt to rename the University of Lagos to ‘Mashood Abiola University’, Tinubu and his co-travellers raised hell, claiming that the Lagos University was an old institution to be renamed.
But the equally old and well known ‘Maiduguri University’ was thoughtlessly renamed ‘Muhammadu Buhari’ University by Tinubu, after the death of the immediate past HONEST president of Nigeria. The thoughtless move was obviously made to appeal to the sentiments of the millions of admirers of the late leader, particularly Northerners. Despite the stringent protest of some alumni and other concerned citizens, the dictatorial president calling the shots in Nigeria, still refuses to revert to the old and popular name of the institution.
The Chicago University ‘graduate’ equally renamed the University of Abuja to Yakubu Gowon University, and sacked the then Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor (of Law), A’isha Sani Maikudi, a Muslim from Katsina state. He replaced her with an Acting Vice Chancellor, Professor Patricia Manko Lar, a Christian from Plateau state, who went on to equally hurriedly replace all the four persons occupying the four (4) important positions not belonging to her religious belief, with those who belong.
The Acting Vice Chancellor ‘conquered’ the university for her religious faith, and appointed fellow believers in all the most important offices in the university. These include the office of the Chancellor of the University, office of the Registrar, and office of the Chief Accountant, but the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa did not call her to order. This suggests that the Acting VC was brought there to execute someone’s agenda.
To prove the veracity of the allegation, the Vice Chancellor of the Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, who was sacked together with the Vice Chancellor of Abuja University, Professor A’isha Sani Maikudi, was recently reinstated to her position by the Minister of Education.
And according to an article published in the Daily Trust E-paper of 28-7-2025, “Under Dr. Alausa’s watch, different principles and or yardsticks are being invented or applied by the Federal Ministry of Education to various universities, even when they face the same situation or experience requiring a similar solution or way out.”
The article, which was written by Dr. Labaran Muhammad of Bayero University, Kano, continues that, “it smacks of gross injustice and outright persecution on the part of the Minister of Education to whimsically decide to restore the proper leadership governing structure at the Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education while encouraging the University of Abuja to continue wallowing in the iniquity of an illegally imposed equivalent of sole administration that the Universities Miscellaneous Provisions Act has explicitly banned for Nigerian universities.
“It is common knowledge that in the last five months, the University of Abuja has attained new unenviable heights in the desecration of the ethos of the collegiate, rule-based process of governance and management and its increasing replacement by the infantile sectarian and gung-ho predilection of the interim administration led by the outgoing acting Vice-Chancellor, Professor Patricia M. Lar.
“Dr. (Medical) Alausa, has facilitated the reinstatement of the Vice-Chancellor of the Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education, Owerri, Professor Stella Ngozi Lemchi, while deliberately leaving out Professor Aisha Sani Maikudi of the University of Abuja, with whom they were removed from the office on the reported authorisation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in early February this year. The letter reinstating Professor Lemchi, signed.
“One will be perfectly correct to contemplate the execution of a pre-determined script in the seeming perpetuation of the current University of Abuja leadership saga. Otherwise, why should those from the southern part of Nigeria, like Professor Lemchi, who was affected along with Professor Maikudi, be reinstated, while the latter is not? Or, is it because of the alleged influence of a powerful political figure and Lemchi’s godfather from Imo state, as being speculated by sources privy to current happenings at the Ministry of Education? Even at that, the insinuation of primordial undercurrent remains.
“One is consoled that the matter has persisted because it touches on the raw nerves of impunity, lawlessness, and injustice that must be addressed to ensure both justice and a national balancing act, necessitated by the similar situation at the two universities under reference. To reiterate the beginning of the write-up, what is good for the goose should be good for the gander!
“The Minister of Education must brace himself to accept the fact that the Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education and the University of Abuja cannot be treated differently. Hence, the reinstatement of Professor Lemchi and Professor Maikudi should be a result of the same crisis of impunity and undue interference in the affairs of their respective universities. Leaving the latter in the lurch and restoring the former to her job will complicate matters for the Tinubu Presidency, forever stain its record and legacy from which Dr. Alausa will not escape the attendant opprobrium and damning verdict of history.
“But more importantly, Nigerians from Professor Maikudi’s part of the country and others with a good conscience will never accept the blatant injustice of not reinstating her as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja. This is simply because she is not a second-class citizen!”
President Tinubu is said to be a very deadly strategist, who makes sure that he gets what he wants no matter what it takes. And this is said to account for why ‘every politician’ appears to be rushing to join the ruling party. I do not think that is the reason. The simple reason is money. Again, I do not believe he is that deadly tactically, or why would a deadly tactical politician show all his cards face up? Visiting the North with furious vendetta (with passionate enmity) in his first term is tantamount to revealing to the opposition ALL his options in advance.
A deadly tactician would reserve all his deadly arsenal against the enemy (North, In Tinubu’s case) for the second term. Pretence to being the good guy in the first term is the stuff of very cunning and good politicians. Besides, if it is revenge for an offence (perceived in his own case), it will be better delivered when it is least expected, which is the second term. In late Mario Puzo’s novel, ‘Godfather’, Don Corleone, who went by the same name as the noble, once said that, ‘Revenge is a dish served best when it is cold’. Not for Tinubu.
Deliberate lack of security, lack of power (electricity), lack of proportional representation in his cabinet, absence of representation in the important agencies and parastatals under his regime, lack of important projects, and many other minuses, were SUFFERED only by the North. Whereas the other side, particularly the president’s tribespeople, had almost everything in a supposed representative government.
Then there were the monumental theft of public funds, pervasive poverty and hunger in the country, which also characterised his first term. Still, in his wildest dream, the president expects to coast home with ease for a second term, which even some White people find it to be an IMPOSSIBLE task to achieve.
May God deny another chance to people who consider it their birthright to be elected for a second term, even though their first term is a failure of a very costly proportion to the country.
Malumfashi wrote from Katsina.
