Re: Will Sheriff solve ABU VC stalemate?

From all indications, the piece is a sheer orchestrated propaganda sponsored against not only on the personality of Bunu Sheriff Musa and his team in the Governing Council of ABU, Zaria, but it also downplayed the institutional values of the legendary institution. The writer, and by extension, the newspaper organisation were unfortunately quite partisan. That […]

From all indications, the piece is a sheer orchestrated propaganda sponsored against not only on the personality of Bunu Sheriff Musa and his team in the Governing Council of ABU, Zaria, but it also downplayed the institutional values of the legendary institution.

The writer, and by extension, the newspaper organisation were unfortunately quite partisan. That is to say that it is disappointing to underestimate the obvious and this is for a very indisputable reason.

Leadership newspaper is a well-rated medium known for its objective and balanced reporting with positive and progressive radicalism; a newspaper that is an acclaimed media leader in the promotion of true democracy, transparent governance, professional ethics and general value orientation in our nation in its publications. So far, this estimation has not reduced, but the organisation can definitely not sustain such high rating with people like Emmanuel Bello and Steven Adikwu.

Anyone who is conversant with the history of ABU, Zaria, and who appreciates the value of peace and stability (in this context, academics) would not mismanage sensitive information the way the writers of the debased report did. All the contentious issues raised in the report were only lopsided in favour of one camp, the paymaster of the writers without making any serious efforts to properly get balanced views from other people in the crisis.

It never even sought the views of the main actors in the entire drama; it only hid under one fictitious character that was willing to vent his anger against the personality and office of Ambassador Sheriff. That report was too juvenile to have been written by the editor of any newspaper. This position is supported by several questions which the writers failed to address.

For example, was any effort made to cross-examine their facts and seek the views of Ambassador Bunu Sheriff Musa to know how he was appointed?

Did they contact him to find out how he has been going about the uphill task of producing another Vice Chancellor for the university? Did they care to find out what steps he has or hasn’t already taken and what circumstances guided his judgments and duty? No. Not the writers who were so much in a hurry to publish half truths and insults on the personality of Sheriff in order to gratify the ambition of their lords and their own commercial interest.

The purpose of this article is not to follow the preposterous footsteps and sinister intent of the juvenile writers with mutilated sense of judgment. This rejoinder is meant to stand in the balance and avoid unnecessary misrepresentations, fault-finding and finger-pointing exercise as the writers above have done.

But it is important to briefly look at the personality of Ambassador Sheriff. It is possible that his person was underestimated and that is not impossible for people like Bello and Adikwu who have incurable impatience for proper and detailed investigation. For those who may not know, Ambassador Sheriff (OFR) was a former Minister of Industry; Mines, Power and Steel; Aviation; Water Resources and Employment, Labour and Productivity between 1985 and 1992. He served as a member of the 1994 Constitutional Conference, served as a member of the National Committee on Vision 2010 for Nigeria between 1996 and 1997. He has also served as the Chairman of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital and served as Nigerian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of France from 1998 to 1999. And on completion of his tenure, he was awarded the French National Honour of Grand Officer of the Order of National Merit by the French President, just to mention a few of some of the public positions that he held before now.

Ambassador Sheriff has been the President of ABU Alumni Association for the past three years; Chairman of Hadejiya Jama’are Yobe Basin Trust Fund (HJYBTF) and the new Chairman of ABU’s Governing Council, a position he considers as an opportunity to promote and uphold the core values of Sardauna’s legacies in the face of the current depreciation and collapse of some of his major legacies. He also considers his present appointment as an opportunity to pay back a debt he owes ABU for the quality training he received there, which paved way for his numerous achievements both in his public and private life.

His appointment is purely based on the merit of his distinguished antecedents. President Umaru Musa Yar’adua has full confidence in the capacity of Ambassador Sheriff to deliver on such a sensitive mandate by deploying his wealth of experience nationally and internationally. The resignation of Alhaji Adamu Ciroma as the Chairman of the Governing Council should not be rampantly misinterpreted. The elder statesman, from all intents and purposes, gave way so as to preserve his honour and integrity and that in itself is virtuous.

For a medium like Leadership which has been enjoying public ovation as one of the fastest-growing and credible newspapers in Nigeria, it is a minus and indeed belittling for its some of its editors to be so brazenly partisan, biased and myopic. The quality of the write-up in terms of reasoning, grammatical and professional output was substantially odious and watery.

A good counsel for the writers at this point is necessary. As young men who aspire to grow in their career and life, pecuniary interests capable of hampering their integrity should be the last thing on their minds for now. And just one more reminder: Sam Nda-Isaiah is growing in his business, because he upholds and respects elders. Bello and others who are working under him should learn from him.

And for the actors in the ABU crisis, none of them should yield to desperation because he wants to become the Vice Chancellor. We should team up with the current Governing Council and the new management of the university towards a peaceful process of producing another Vice Chancellor. Nobody will be judged by the value he destroys, but by the value he builds.

All factions should allow due process to be followed in the selection of ABU Vice Chancellor, so that the successful candidate will feel tall among his peers. ABU, Zaria deserves nothing less.

Ibrahim Ajobe is a media consultant based in Abuja.