I received enthusiastic responses to last week’s column. Although there were a few people who didn’t get the thesis of the article, many did. Following is a selection of their reactions. But I made a fundamental error, which was first pointed out to me by Mal Ibrahim Zakariya’u (find his comment below). I wrote that Professor Danbatta went to court during the administration of Goodluck Jonathan. That was incorrect. It was Dr. Bashir Gwandu who went to court and won a case against the government of Dr. Jonathan. I also misspelled Professor Abubakar Rasheed’s name when he was mentioned as the vice chancellor who succeeded Professor AttahiruJega. The errors are regretted.
Femi Fadairo: “Dear Prof. Brainy, your above mentioned article like others, is on point. To further buttress your assertion, I learnt that BUK ranks tops with TETFUND intervention as the university is a construction site.Iam jealous, being a 1974 alumni of Ife.Thanks.”
Mrs Liman: “I’ve shared your masterpiece with Professor Rasheed, who is now with NECO.”
Bashiru Musa: May Allah supply us with more Dabattas.
Yakubu Musa: “Prof Brainy at his best. He’s put the whole thing around the current situation, as regards our regulations, in perspective.”
Umar Suleiman Baba:“Nice one, we need radicals like him everywhere.”
Yariman Buhari Maijamaa:“Doc, but you left-out who (what) molded these professors. Their colleges, their undergraduate schools. Or these are irrelevant here? Because I think their doctorate schools only polished what is already in them.”
Martins Ogwuegho:“Please perfect or near-perfect is not because of the university you attended or the school you lecture but what you are as a person. In Nigeria what about personalities like Wole Soyinka, late Bala Usman, late Dora Akunyili, Gani Fewemi, Femi Falana and Balarebe Musa?”
Hamid Yusuf: “I believe the two celebrated professors i.e. Jega and Danbatta must have been first molded by the greatest University South of the Sahara and North of River Limpopo, that’s ABU Zaria. Please, the writer should not distort history, ABU molded the two into what they were before others claim them.”
Sidi Nasir: “I have absolute confidence in the leadership qualities in the highest level of integrity of the two professors. I wish Prof Danbatta success and God protection in his new assignment. We are definitely feeling his impact. Allah yatayariko.”
Ahmad Sanusi: “There is also need for MTN to share a piece of the cake (the trillions they rake in every year) with Nigerians by listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and even more importantly, with their staff, by improving staff welfare and career progression than the structure they have now, which is full of contract staff – even the permanent staff only get elevated when there is internal vacancy for positions.”
Ahmad Shehu: “This is a great article on my university, and I’m happy I read it. We pray for Prof. Danbatta to succeed. Thank you Dooba for sharing this, I would have missed it. A little correction, please.Abubakar Rasheed, notAbdurrasheed, succeeded Jega.
“Also, I would like to add a point: currently, BUK is the major source of work force in this country. Presently BUK provides the vice chancellors of three Federal Universities (Dutse, Kebbi and National Open University), three state Universities (Northwest, Kogi and Kwara) and uncountable number of DVCs, librarians and registrars. Of this number, I can provide reliable and tangible records as to their performances, and many from these institutions would testify that what they have achieved supersedes what they have inherited. However, people should understand the following:
“1. That BUK is a Nigerian federal university and not of Kano of or North. So, its achievements are for all of us and so the praises should make every Nigerian happy than sad. If BUK becomes Oxford, it will be d pride of Nigeria to which all of us are part of.
“2. That the author didn’t intend to impress Bukites. He has stated it clearly, that this scenario shows that we can still have hope in the Nigerian university system and in our academics, so that our pessimism is put aside for optimism. Thanks Dr. Dooba for sharing all the time.
“Finally, do we know that BUK, is the only University that produced three ASUU Presidents that helped change the Nigerian Education? These are: Prof. Jega, Prof. Sule Kano and the incumbent, Dr. N. Fagge.
KabirTsakuwa: Professor AuwalYadudu, an insightful professor of constitutional law from Northern Nigeria is another quality among the pack.”
Ibrahim Zakariyau: “Sir, you said: ‘Actually, it was his struggles there and his crusades against the shenanigans of the Jonathan administration that made him my hero…. They pushed him out. He went to court; he won.’
“I don’t know if I’m missing something. But I think it was Prof Bashir Gwandu that challenged the previous government and won in court. I personally attended a workshop by Digital Bridge Institute, an institution under NCC. Prof Danbatta was then the Vice President of the Institute at their Kano Campus. There was no any reported altercation between Danbatta and the then government. It was Dr. Bashir Gwandu, then Executive Commissioner (Technical Services) of the Nigerian Communications Commission.”
KabiruDanladiGarba: “Well articulated, unbias and straight-to-the-point.Dr Dooba has said it all. My university deserves commendation indeed.”
