Date: 2017-08-14

Sir: Permit me to rejoice with Prof. Jamiu Olaoye Oyawoye in Offa town, on his 2017 birthday. He was giving annual support to our academic association when I was its general secretary. When my two terms ended, I passed-on his address. But this letter-article is about Nigeria's rulers. They are mostly bad rulers, and they cannot be good rulers if they didn't pass through good schools. In that wise, I commend the administrators of the Summit University, Offa, Kwara State, Nigeria.

They told us on radio that the school is not about religion, since it admits students across religions, but knowledge and ìwà ?m?lúwàbí (godly behaviour/ character/conduct/attitude) is crucial. Speaking in Yoruba, they said ìwà ?m?lúwàbí is the university’s watchword, and not religion (religion being about what you believe-in and the rituals/ablutions you perform). The Yoruba say, ìwà l’?ba àwúre (good character is king/superior to magic for good luck).

Assume that ìwà ?m?lúwàbí were the philosophy, motto, or fundamental option of Nigeria's rulers! As things stand, they cannot even tell us why they attacked Boko Haram (BH) in the first instance in 2009 when that Islamic sect was only living its own life. Why did they kill the BH leader, Mohammed Yusuf, extra-judicially in Police cell, handcuffed and leg-chained? Count the costs of that senseless persistent war in human lives and economic resources, 2009 till date! Nigeria’s rulers rejected dialogue while BH craved for it. They (Nigeria's rulers) stopped Madam Sarah Jubril from mediating dialogue with BH in 2012.

They refused dialogue even when it would have saved the Chibok girls in April 2014. The current President, General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB), came and poured petrol on the raging fire, ravaging human lives and economic resources. God struck GMB with ailment. Instead of resigning, he is worsening his situation with God, holding Nigerians to ransom, claiming that he is fine in London but that doctors are holding him back. Is it the doctors or the state of his own health?

Nigerian Christian and Islamic rulers stress religion above ìwà ?m?lúwàbí and they are using religion to confuse, divide and rule Nigerians. The highest form of boko haram (academic fraud) is a situation in which African Religious Knowledge (ARK) is excluded from basic schools’ curricula in Nigeria. That haram is the matrix of all other harams, including the financial boko haram that is responsible for Nigeria’s gross underdevelopment and mass abject poverty. Spoils of office are causing GMB to refuse to resign, while he is pretending to be well in London. How can doctors detain a healthy person? Those who tag themselves pro-Buhari group are political jobbers. God Almighty will reward everyone according to deeds and misdeeds, based on good or bad ìwà.

Arising from the developments in the Peoples Democratic Party, you can see that opposition to zoning of key positions is based on selfish interests. Hence the constitution should legitimise zoning, for equity, peace, and stability. Don't you concur?