This past
Monday was a very eventful day. About 10 am, I set out with my colleagues,
Chinedu and Mary on what turned out to be an expedition. I thought I knew Ogun
State reasonably well. I was wrong. Chinedu was certain that Olabisi Onabanjo
University was right on the very busy Shagamu-Benin highway. He was wrong.
It became
clear that we did not know where we were going to. Is our country a nation that
is running without first walking? In an age when almost every new car that
arrives Nigeria is fitted with the global positioning satellite or GPS, there
are practically no road signs directing you to wherever you are going to. I do
not even know what my zip code is. Do you know yours? So, we move around like
the blind and things that are so simple elsewhere are so difficult here.
Chinedu,
Mary and I had no choice but to ask everyone we saw how to get to Olabisi
Onababjo University. Nigerians are very nice people. They do not ever want to
let you down so no one will tell you that he does not know what you are talking
about. Every one we asked knew the way to the university, smiled and pointed in
a direction. Half of them were wrong.
Ago Iwoye
is not on the Shagamu–Benin Expressway. It is several miles into the
hinterland. By the time we came back to Lagos about five hours later, the
black coloured car that took us to Ago Iwoye had a new colour between red and
brown. Whoever was given the job to tar the dual carriage way between Shagamu
and the university town in the heart of Ogun State has found reason to keep the
project permanently as ‘work in progress’.
As we
drove on and on, Chinedu kept asking whether we were on the right road. Apart
from one or two other cars, ours was the only thing moving. The University is
an island in the middle of nowhere. If you were looking for a quiet place to do
research or scholarly work, you may never find a better place than Ago Iwoye.
While bits and pieces of the road to the university town consist of red soil,
the roads within the university itself are very well laid out with trees lining
the roads.
On Monday,
July 7, 2014, the OGD Hall at Olabisi Onababjo University, Ago Iwoye was
rocking. People had come from far and near to share a historic moment with a
music maestro who has in many ways created a unique personality and left his
imprint in the sands of time. The university had decided to tap into the
extraordinary creative genius of Ebenezer Obey and to use the experience of the
miliki superstar to enrich its students in its Department of English
& Performing Arts. At the investiture of Dr Ebenezer Obey as Visiting
Artiste/Emeritus Professor, the custodians of Yoruba culture came out in their
numbers to say yes to a man who for many years has symbolized the very best of
Nigerian creative enterprise. Among the many frontline Obas present were the
Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo; the Osile of Oke Ona, Egba, Oba Dapo
Tejuosho and Oba Abdulrazaq Adenuga, the Ebumawe of Ago Iwoye.
I was very
happy to witness the very impressive event. Chief Commander Ebenezer Obey was
already on his way to becoming an icon while I was growing up in Enugu where I
went to high school after the Nigerian civil war.His songs were already
trending. ‘Board Members’ was blaring everywhere and the sonorous voice behind
the miliki sound had easily begun to endear itself to one and all across
the nation regardless of tribe or creed. I never thought I would have the good
fortune of ever meeting the Chief Commander.
Fate
sometimes gives you big surprises. In the last 27 years,‘Commander’ has been my
elder brother, an incredible source of inspiration and an adviser like no
other. I cannot think of anything of substance I have done within the period
without his input. His god given intelligence and limitless wisdom have been
mine to tap into whenever I wanted. His humble yet dignified carriage is a
lesson I have kept trying to learn. The door to his home has been wide open to
me for many years. I was away from the country when I learnt of the
investiture.There is no way I would have allowed such an event to take place in
my absence so I had to find my way back home.
On Monday,
there was sweet music all the way at OGD Hall of Olabisi Onabanjo University.
The students of the Creative Arts Department o fthe university first took the
stage to give an enchanting performance of their interpretation of the miliki
sound.Then the master took the stage and you understand how much good music can
be a leveller. From the royal fathers to the security men in the hall, everyone
was digging it. When the Chief Commander announced a gift to the students of
some of the best musical instruments money can buy, there was commotion in the
hall.
As Nigeria
grapples with the challenges of developing an educational system that is
relevant to the needs of a thirsty developing nation, the leadership of Olabisi
Onabanjo University may have lit a fire that others will follow. Many have for
long complained that the recent products of our universities come into the
labour market full of theories and no skills that make them useful to any
employer. It is therefore revolutionary to foster a proper partnership between
the academia and the private sector in which persons with practical experience
and a record of success can take out time to go and impart practical knowledge
on the young people our nation badly needs for its tomorrow.
I hope
that I can contribute something to this new way of thinking. See you next week.
This article was first published in
Locomotion, Tony Okoroji’s weekly column in Nigeria’s Saturday
Independent.
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