Students’ nonchalant attitude to learning forced me into early retirement – Hajiya Kolo

What role did your father play in your life?My father retired as the Nigerian High Commissioner to London. He is quoted in the book, ‘Makers of Northern Nigeria.’ He was one of the people trained by the Sardaunaof Sokotoand he worked in the civil service. He rose to become the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry […]

What role did your father play in your life?
My father retired as the Nigerian High Commissioner to London. He is quoted in the book, ‘Makers of Northern Nigeria.’ He was one of the people trained by the Sardaunaof Sokotoand he worked in the civil service. He rose to become the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Defense in Lagos.
We were six in the family, but only five survived and we are still alive. I lived with my parents in Jos, Lagos and London. My father was born in Jos and we still have a house there. I never really lived in Niger state, and in Nupeland where my father hails from.
 How did you start formal education?
 I don’t know how I started (general laughter). I just found myself in school. I then studied at Ahmadu Bello University, (ABU) Zaria, where I studied English Education in 1978 and subsequent degrees at Aston University and Birmingham University, in the UK.
 How many ladies where in ABU then?
 We were not many then. I remembered former Women Affairs Minister Mrs. Inna Ciroma, Professor RuqayyatuRufai former Education Minister, Pharmacist LubabatuAdamu Bello, Aisha Musa, BintaShehu among others.
How was schooling then?
 We had running water and security.If you had a male visitor, he would go to the waiting room and signed visitor’s form that he wanted to see so and so person. And then a lady-staff would come to your room. If you want, you go to the hall and see him. The maximum number of students in a room was two persons and some had a room to themselves. We had good food, but our only mild complaint then was that the chicken was too small (laughter.)
 Can you remember some of your lecturers?
 Yes, because they treated us very well. They include Professor Adekunle of Criminology, Professor Adamu Baikie and some white men that later went back to Britain.
 Where did you do your teaching practice, as it was compulsory for “A” level students?
 I did my teaching practice in Dawakin Kudu in the old Kano state, now in Jigawa state. I heard the name for the first time and it sounded like I was going to the middle of nowhere. Three of us where sent there. It was a great experience as I learnt a lot. I then did my NYSC in Port Harcourt where we all come out and do some military drills in the morning in the camp. I was posted to the Naval Command and I taught in their school.
 After NYSC I started working with the Kaduna Polytechnic as a Lecturer in the Department of Languages in 1979 and taught communication skills.
 The salary was 400 Naira and I liked the job as I had time for myself.  We got housing allowance, transport allowance and loan of cars. Once you graduated you could have a job then, though not necessarily what you wanted. I got married in 1980 and I was blessed with children.
 My salary was 400 naira with other allowances. But it was enough then, as you can buy a car at the cost of 1,000 naira
 I then went to London in Birmingham University to do a Post Graduate Diploma course and then Aston University to do master’s degree.
 What happened when you came back to Nigeria from London?
 There came the influx of doctors from India and pilots from francophone countries to Nigeria, and we had to teach them how to communicate in English. I spent a lot of time teaching them.
 What experience will you remember as a lecturer?
 I don’t have any nasty experience, but I spent a lot of time trying to force people to be speaking English especially the girls. That was why the certificate courses were introduced for in-service civil servants to progress. The attitude of indifference of northern girls to education then was sad, as they do not have background and they shy away from speaking English. They didn’t want to talk so as not to be laughed at. English is the official language and you can expect me to speak Nupe, my father tongue in the National Assembly. Parents should complement schools in teaching their children.
Who were your contemporaries in Kaduna Polytechnic?
 They are Mrs Adeshina, Mrs. Osasuna, Malam Gandu. Mr. Fagbemi, Mr Emeka Moge (now a Bishop).
 Was your post-graduate program in London on in-service or how?
 I got a British scholarship. The criteria adopted for the selection was academic performance.
 How did you cope with the weather in London?
 I was born in Jos of Plateau state and I had stayed there with my parents. I like cold weather. I am now in Kaduna, the weather is very hot.
 How did the society regard diplomats then?
 They were highly regarded and were hard working. And I want to state that the claim that Nupe speaking people don’t want to work outside Nupeland is not true. They are all over the country. My father was a graduate and he was very lucky. He worked with Hassan Katsina and many others.
 Why did you retire from Kaduna Polytechnic?
 I had one or two things doing outside teaching and I had to look after my family and was becoming disenchanted with lecturing. Students don’t understand that education was vital. I found that the students were not interested they wanted you to spoon-feed them and they want to bribe you.
 How did you plan for your retirement?
 I was married to a Medical Doctor who had a private hospital. I managed the house and had free time and I opened some businesses. There was nothing traumatic for living Kaduna Polytechnic.
 I was involved in a lot of things like Non-Governmental Organisations. I was president of a couple of them. I was Kaduna State President of Nigerian Association of Women Entrepreneurs, NAWE, I arranged for rural women to travel to UK and USA for tradefair and Nigerians there queued to buy egusi, palm oil, maigyada, kolanutetc in the western world. I was the immediate past President of the Nigerian American Chamber of Commerce, Kaduna State chapter.
 How are you coping with importation, security, tax collectors etc?
 I did it through the right channel. I paid four of five different revenues.  I don’t know if it goes to the coffers of the government. But now we have an association with a chairman. We went to Kaduna State Urban Planning Development Authority, KASUPDA and we negotiated and paid directly and stopped paying through the touts. The touts don’t come now as we go to verify how much we are to pay.
 Do many business people go to the USA or they make orders due to visa problems?
 Yes, some want to go and some want to import from USA. If there is a tradefair in the US, like say on plastic only, it would be big, as commerce is not a small thing in the USA. Bottle water and satchet-water industry can go and see from Nigeria. And if it is for Agriculture, it will have things like tractors etc. There is “Cobo Conference” like how to start and sustain business. I took some personalities from Kaduna to America from Kaduna, Kaura, Kudan and others. They went for the lectures and saw how the rest of the world were doing business.
 What of the problem of security?
 I was selling gold when armed robbers came and ransacked the gold in my supermarket. I was not in the country then. I left everything in the hands of God. And now bomb blasts have really affected businesses.
 Can your children speak Nupe?
 Even I cannot speak Nupe, how can my children speak the language? My father and I were all born in Jos and my mum is from Kaduna. My children are not in Nigeria. They are four. They chose their careers.
 What is the way forward for Nigeria?
 Diversification is the music in Nigeria now, because we cannot continue to defend on oil 100 per cent. We don’t implement our good policies to the latter.
 Why are you not in politics?
 I am not a card carrying member of any political party. But I am interested in what is happening in Nigeria and want good governance.
 Didn’t Kaduna Polytechnic tell you not to retire?
 I said I wanted to retire to take care of my family. They could not stop me. The Rector then was Engineer Hamman Tukur.
 Are you a pensioner?
 It is a long story. I retired after 12 years. I did not have my children in Nigeria. And I was out of the country for a long time. And when I came back and went to Kaduna Polytechnic for my entitlements, they said it seemed that somebody had collected my benefits. They started telling me to come today and come back tomorrow. I told them to show me where I signed that I have collected my cheque, but they didn’t. I will soon go to the court of law to claim my entitlements. It is sad that the effort of my teaching career has been misappropriated.
 What is your advice for the younger generation?
 The young men are not willing to get married. When we were in school, we had incentives that we could afford to ride cars, but we didn’t, until we graduated. We later got married. Some married while they were in school before they were considered to be over educated by the society then.
 But young men come out of the university and spend a lot of time trying to get a job. I can allow a lady to marry somebody who is not employed. I don’t want the situation where people fend solely for their children and then their grandchildren don’t get to enjoy them.
 I want them to diversify as there are many means of livelihood than white collar jobs as the very instincts of everywoman is to marry somebody who can protect her.
 Should ladies learn house-keeping and management before marriage, as most people complain that people are not taught at home until they get married?
 All Nigerian ladies without exception of creed and ethnicity should know that marriage is not all about pleasure always and it is unfortunate to see a little girl married three different times at her prime age. It is important for ladies to learn how to keep themselves, the house and the environment clean.
 And I seriously detest how parents apply eye lashes, Indian mask, eye-pencils, lipsticks for underage girls.
 To me the first thing in life is education and everything is secondary. My aunty once said “won’t your schooling end?” That when my grandmother was my age, she was already married and had a big girl. She pressed me that she was willing to get me a husband.
 But things are different now, I enjoined literate women to spare sometime and coach their children at home and not to leave everything with the school teacher. They say ‘educate a woman and educate a nation.’
 What is your reaction to the increase in the number of divorce?
 It is frown at even by our creator. Divorce happens, but is not bad but the reason for the divorce is what matters. If you marry a small girl you have to train her. If a small boy marries a small girl then the end thing is divorce.
 Do you maintain contact with University friends?
 We met with Professor Ruqayyatu when she was a Minister at the NCWS meeting in Abuja and we met with Lubabatu Adamu Bello last week.