Within a space of nine days (April 3,
2015 and April 11, 2015), the University of Ilorin lost two gems - its
pioneer head (Principal), Prof. Tekena Tamuno, and one of its most
pleasant staffers, Mr. Ganiyu Yahaya. Even though the circumstances of
the two deaths were quite different, one dying at a relatively ripe age
and the other in his prime, the incidents were both great losses to the
University community.
Prof. Tamuno, who died on April 11,
2015, was appointed Principal of the newly established University
College, Ilorin by the then military administration of Gen. Olusegun
Obasanjo in September 1975. He was barely three months into the
assignment of midwifing the new institution, when he was again recalled
to the University of Ibadan and appointed Vice-Chancellor.
In synch with the well-worn cliché that
“it is not how long but how well”, the late Prof. Tamuno made his mark
in Ilorin in those three memorable months. According to the Registrar,
Mr. Emmanuel Obafemi, in a condolence message he sent to the widow of
the renowned historian on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof.
AbdulGaniyu Ambali, “during this memorable period, Prof. T. N. Tamuno
contributed significantly to the establishment, development and
stability” of Unilorin. The Registrar recalled that the pioneer
Principal was “a pleasing, friendly and easy-going person who was loved
by all who were privileged to work with him.”
Even though, full-blown academic
activities didn't commence at the University before Prof. Tamuno left
towards the end of 1975, he would be remembered for his passionate
vision and pioneering role in laying a solid foundation for the
University of Ilorin upon which generations of Vice-Chancellors after
him are proudly building. Indeed, the pre-eminent status this University
is enjoying today in the comity of universities in Nigeria and Africa
in general could be justifiably traced to the late Prof. Tamuno's
foresight and dedication to duty.
If Prof. Tamuno's death was painful, the
demise of Mr. Yahaya on April 3, 2015 was even more so because of the
youthfulness of his age (barely 47) and the suddenness of its
occurrence. The news of Mr. Yahaya's passage was almost unbelievable
when it circulated early in the morning of April 4, 2015. A veritable
man of the people, Mr. Yahaya used his position to put smiles on the
faces of quite a number of people who came in contact with him. Indeed,
the late Principal Planning Officer at the Directorate of Academic
Planning, was your ideal officer, one of those whose activities at the
University of Ilorin contributed to the several heights attained by the
Better by far institution.
At the fidau prayer held for him at the
Onise-Esin Mosque, Aloore, Ilorin, the Imam, Alhaji Ibrahim Olukodo, who
struggled to fight back the welling tears in his eyes, openly confessed
to Mr. Yahaya's humility, diligence, commitment and dedication to the
service of God and humanity. Even though he was not a “big man”, he was
honoured, at the fidau, by the teeming crowd of sympathizers including
the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ambali; his immediate predecessor, Prof.
Is-haq Oloyede; the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Management Service), Prof.
Yisa Fakunle; the Bursar, Mr. Saka Yusuf; the Director of Academic
Planning, Prof. S. A. Kuranga; the National President of the Ilorin
Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU), Alhaji Abdul-Hameed Hadi;
several other top officials of the University and a multitude of his
colleagues.
In an apparent reading of the palpable
mood of disbelief that was boldly written on the faces of many in the
crowd of sympathizers at the fidau, the Chief Imam of the University of
Ilorin Central Mosque, Prof. AbdulGaniyu Oladosu, who delivered a solemn
sermon, described death as inevitable, saying that no matter how long
one lives on earth, one cannot escape the finality of death.
Pointing out that nobody can query God
on whatever He does, the Unilorin Chief Imam said that the Almighty had
“completed our destiny 40 years before we were created”. He, therefore,
counseled, “If we have cause to smile, we should not be over joyous, and
when we are in a state of grief, we should have the conviction that
there will be light at the end of the tunnel.”
One lesson that I took away from the
life and times of Mr. Yahaya is that “You don't have to necessarily be a
political office holder or a “big man” to make a lasting impact on the
people. You can positively impact your society in your little corner of
your workplace”. This much, the late Mr. Yahaya had sufficiently proved.
May the souls of these great Unilorites rest in perfect peace.
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