I Know a Nigerian Star

Although he has been described by friends and fans as, “a writer”, “a scholar”,“a web designer” and“an entrepreneur”, I choose to call him a star! Yes, anyone who ameliorates the plights of fellow human beings and offers his shoulders for others to lean on deserves to be called a star. Muhammed Abdullahi Tosin is a star and he has proved that by every inch of the word. As a youth, Abdullahi has not only thrown sands in the eyes of mediocrity but he has proven that regardless of age, one can still make a difference in one’s chosen endeavor through hard work, discipline and dedication.

MuhammedAbdullahi was born on the 27^thof November, 1989 to the family of Mr. and Mrs.Otunola Muhammed and he is the last of 5 children. He was bred in Ikotun-Egbe area of Lagos state where he had his primary and secondary school education and is currently a final-year student of law at the University of Ilorin, Kwara state, Nigeria.

Although his birth was never foretold by an angel like that of Samson in the Holy Bible, Abdullahi arrived the University of Ilorin like a ready-made star who was just waiting for the right opportunity to showcase what he had on the inside. Perhaps that opportunity came in 2010 when his hard work saw him to the top of the class earning him the title,‘Scholar Abdullahi’. He holds that title even till date. Though it may be expected that a student of Abdullahi’s caliber would out grow his boots and become pompous for his achievement, Abdullahi had an understanding; ‘the higher you go, the humbler you must become’. Thus, he remained lowly and committed to helping other students do well in their academics too.That is why he never fails to respond to calls for tutorials from his classmates and juniors whenever examinations are approaching. It is therefore not surprising that he bagged he award of the most outstanding student in the Faculty of Law, University of Ilorin in June, 2013.

Realizing that there was still something life could offer him other than just being a university scholar and that he could contribute more immensely to helping others, Abdullahi veered into writing, his age-long passion, in 2011. He worked as a freelance writer for IslamOnline.net, Qatar for close to one year producing news and analysis on Islamic issues and movements in Nigeria, interviewing relevant societal figures and providing insights and calculated predictions on the issues with a view to proffering lasting solutions. Today, Abdullahi remains a paid contributor at nigeria360.com where he writes on entrepreneurship and on other issues of national importance. His articles have also appeared on African Outlook Online and Sahara Reporters, YNaija!, Daily Trust, The Nation Newspaper, Gamji and Guardian News. He also volunteers as a newsletter administrator for the Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC), Nigeria.

As though the aforementioned were not enough, Abdullahi proceeded to show what mettle and foresight he possessed as he got for himself a platform for greater impact. Despite the damning consequences which it would have on his academics, Abdullahi proceeded to launch his website, www.naijawriterscoach.com, in August 2012. The website provides regular updates on essay writing contests, gives step-by-step guidelines on essay writing and provides general writing tips.Today the website has not only inspired and helped many youths achieve their writing dreams but it has also received commendations from many of its fans for quality service delivery. Nuhafoundation.org for instance has described it as“a resource for writers based in Nigeria” These facts are available online at www.naijawriterscoach.com/testimonials.

Also, In order to contribute his quota to nation building and to encourage scholarship among students of Nigerian universities, the annual Naijawriterscoach essay writing competition was kick started by Abdullahi in April this year with  well over 100 students from 22 universities across Nigeria participating.

Furthermore, in a bid to also help others realize their writing potentials, Abdullahi wrote two books entitled ‘Your Right to Write’ and ‘Vertical Writing’which were all published within the space of 4 months! The book ‘Your right to write’ which he gave for free to subscribers of his newsletters, received wide acceptation with more than 1000 downloads in just one month! The more recent ‘Vertical Writing’ launched in October, 2013 has also received wide acceptance for its quality and explicitness and is available on his website and selling like fuel!

When many thought Abdullahi would stop at just being a writer, he stunned his teeming fans with an offer in August, 2013. It was an offer to design websites for writers at the meager sum of 10,000 Naira ($62.5), an opportunity which many promptly grabbed, my humble self inclusive. Commenting on why he delved into web-designing, Abdullahi said: ‘I’m just an ordinary website owner with near-perfect knowledge and expertise at setting up and customizing websites. Ordinarily, this should not be my job. I’m a freelance writer and writing coach and that’s only what I should be doing. But I started offering this service because I hate to see people in distress!’

Abdullahi is a recipient of several awards but only a few are mentioned here;

Third Prize Winner, Annual Ramadan Diet Essay Competition August, 2013

Second Prize Winner, Annual Essay Competition of the Chartered Institute of Personnel

Management of Nigeria (CIPMN) September, 2012

First Prize Winner, Crystal Muslim Organization (CMO) National Essay Competition, Nigeria

May, 2012

First Prize Winner, Glorious Islamic Centre (GIC) National Essay Competition, Nigeria

January, 2012

In conclusion, Abdullahi is no doubt one of the very few Nigerian youths out there making a difference today even while still an undergraduate. Although he has only just started, for me such a youth should not only be commended and encouraged for his extraordinary courage and doggedness but should be emulated and followed after by all.

THE FIRST CLASS IDIOT BY TOBI AMOO

Tell it to all Nigerian undergraduates. Tell them over and over till it starts ringing in their ears. That long gone are the days when students were worshiped merely because they have a first class degree. I do not underrate academic excellence in any way. As a matter of fact, I believe that what is worth doing at all should be well done. Therefore, spending 4 or 5 years (or even more, courtesy of ASUU strike) in an institution should be 'resultful'.
In an educational system that is way behind globally, a student must not be caught in the waves of the current status quo, lest he be swept away unto the island of oblivion.
Employers no longer tremble at the sight of a first class certificate. NO. They need results. They need someone who has something to offer. Someone who can bring something tangible to the table. Someone whose creativity can positively impact the organization.
The world is now competitive, more than ever and the Nigerian student must learn that 'la cramme la poure' has become a blunt albeit redundant tool in this battle. For those who do not know, 'la cramme la poure' is a system where a student crams(memorizes) his note or a material supplied by the lecturer, reproduces it exactly on the answer sheet, gets a good grade and forgets it as soon as the exams are over.
Tell it to the students. Tell them over and over till it starts ringing in their ears. That a first class degree will only get you to the stage. Once there, the audience will be earnestly awaiting you Performance and if you do not meet up they boo you out of the stage. That a first class degree only gets you as far as a room, across an interview panel and it does not guarantee you a job. That a first class degree does not automatically translate to first class career.
What am I saying? Students must learn beyond the chalk board. Students must read outside their expired, rarely updated curriculum. Students must learn soft skills. They must make efforts to get adequate exposure. These are what makes you stand out. Not a certificate you cannot defend after a year due to the amnesia after effect of 'la cramme la poure'.
Lecturers should encourage creativity in the classes. Spur students to think outside the box, to constructively criticize their lesson notes. Marking schemes should only be a guide and not an original that must be photocopied exactly.
check round, do your research, follow the successful people. Ask them questions, and they will tell you their current status is not primarily a result of their class of Degree.
Tell it to all Nigerian undergraduates. Tell them over and over till it starts ringing in their ears. That they should strive to graduate with the best results possible (have a first class if they can). However, they should go a step further to ensure they can defend that certificate, and ultimately compete favorably globally by acquiring such knowledge, exposure and experience as necessary. Otherwise, risk becoming a first class idiot.
Using a Biblical analogy, let me end by saying: For 'la cramme la poure' profits a little but the real knowledge and skills are profitable for all things.

Tobi Amoo is a 500 level law student of the university of Ilorin. He is an entrepreneur and a one-time President of the prestigious Christian Law Student Fellowship of Nigeria, University of Ilorin Chapter. He is a lover of words carefully assembled with a view to making maximum impact, changing the status quo and  making life count. I guarantee that the advice he has given is a pearl of wisdom drawn from his reservoir of experience and believe me nothing can be farther from the truth. 

TRIBUTE TO MY TEACHER

 

It was a long arctic night- the night the nightly news arrived on the borrowed chariot of a long lost friend. I had been regurgitating on an ambiguous Latin term in the note that lay before me, with my back to the desk directly behind and my eyes staring into oblivion, when the tranquility of the classroom where I was seated was perturbed by the vibration of my phone that was stirred up by the turbulent waves of bad news.

‘Hello!’ My friend said

‘Hullo, long time!’ I replied

‘Yes o! You just forgot about me like that’. She accused.

Not wanting to prolong the issue I replied ‘I am sorry, I got busy’

‘Ok o!’ She said not wanting to prolong the matter either.

We exchanged a few more pleasantries before she dropped the bombshell like America did on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in1945.

‘Kure’

‘Yes?’ I answered

‘Do you remember that English teacher that took us English language in SS.3?’

 ‘Yes I do- I remember her vividly’. I replied and when she kept silent, I quickly added

 ‘I even spoke to her last two months’ I said to my friend to show her how close I was with our English language teacher.

 ‘She is no more!’ she said with a sudden diminuendo of tone as though she had just been told that the world was coming to an end that minute.

‘Wowowo… lady, what are you saying?’ I replied expecting to hear that the earlier statement was just an expensive joke that had been triggered off by the fact that we had not seen in ages.

‘It’s true Kure. I can’t joke about a thing like that now’ she said with finality in her voice as she promptly cut the call probably to go mourn our loss or to leave me to my misery.

‘Never’ I muttered to myself as I scrolled through my contacts to confirm the authenticity of the awful news. In no time I got to our teacher’s and before my head could make out what to say to her, my right thumb had dialed the number. Network would however not let it go through. Twice I tried again and then finally a familiar feminine voice spoke and in her characteristic articulate manner, she said:

‘The number you dialed is switched off!’

‘Switched off?’ ‘How can?’ I asked rhetorically, as I tried dialing the number again. And again and again, the same articulate voice kept coming back at me.

‘She probably must have switched off her phone because of her illness’ I said again to myself not wanting to think otherwise. Then I called a colleague of hers to confirm if he had heard the news and to my utter disappointment he confirmed the incredulous news to be true. ‘Aaah!’ I shouted as my phone suddenly became like hot coal in my palm and my heart began to pump faster. My brain was spinning in my head and the earth was revolving underneath my legs as my eyes promptly became active volcanoes letting out a molten magma of tears. ‘So it is true?’ I said again as the tears began to flow freely like the Gurara water falls in Niger state.

Alas it was true! It was true that the cold, filthy hands of death had taken her away from me without my even noticing it. It was all coming back to me now. It was entirely my fault that she left without bidding me farewell because I had not bothered to call her even when I knew she was down with that damned illness - that God-forsaken disease! But who was I to know that it was all going to come to this when I am not the almighty? Alas! All I can do now is to nurse the hurt and treasure the memories of her.

 Till date, I cannot decipher how the wind of death could push an Iroko down in one fell swoop without an opportunity to fight back. Oh! Death how brutal thou art!   I know that even though she was unable to fight back here on earth, death will never defeat her in the great beyond for she had the bravery of a lion and the strength of an elephant.

She was incredibly intelligent, poptastically gifted and impressively eloquent; her rich vocabulary was the envy of her peers, students and colleagues. I recall vividly those Times when she would urge us to speak only the appropriate Queen’s English if we ever wanted to be like her. How can I also forget the day she had to impose stringent penalty on us to see that we spoke just the correct English? I recall too well too how she even made enemies of some of us who seldom come on her list of ‘pigeon English’ speakers. For her ‘pigeon English’ was not an option- it was either your mother’s tongue or the Queen’s English. No more, no less! There never even was a time when I visited her at home that she did not have something to correct about my spoken English. Often times I would wonder to myself if she had been borne in the country where English language originated from because she seemed to know just everything about the language! She not only was an intellectual but she was an effectual orator and a sage that was dearly loved and respected by all who knew her.

At home, she was as gentle as the quiet of rivers of Shiroro, holy as Saint Monica and graceful as Queen Elizabeth II. She rarely had any cause to quarrel with her sons. One word from her was enough to keep everyone in check without having to raise a finger. She was indeed a mother and a wife, a sister and a friend.

It saddens me that she had to leave at a time when the world needed her most. Cruel death took her when her labour was just about to be rewarded. I know it is not the end yet anyways because she has only gone to be with the Lord. We shall see her again someday. Until then Posterity will live to remember her!

         

Mrs. Alabi Erondu Ezioma was a former teacher at Government Secondary School Bwari, Abuja and Kure Ayuk’s English Language Teacher from SS.1 to SS.3. She personally groomed him in the art of essay writing. She was a multi-talented cum award winning teacher. Just before her demise in 2012 she had bagged the award of the Best Teacher in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja in 2011. This award saw her to China on a one month course. Her doctorate degree program at the University of Abuja was near complete when she passed on. If she had been alive, today would have been her 44^th birthday.

Can ASUU be sued?

Introduction

The privity of contract rule opines that where a person is privy to or is a party to a particular contract such a person can sue and be sued under the contract in the case of any breach by the other party or himself. However, a third party (i.e., a person who is not a party to that contract) can neither sue nor be sued under the contract. This is because in every contractual agreement, parties to the contract must be said to be ad idem before it can be enforced on them. By being ad idem it is meant that they must have been mutually and voluntarily agreed on the terms of the contract without any form of variation. It therefore follows that when a party is not privy to a contract it cannot be said that he is ad idem with the other party.

 It is on this basis that it has been contended by some students and my humble self that since the students of Nigerian Universities which are currently on strike were not party to the ASUU-FG agreement in 2009 then, it is improper to subject their academics to the hazards of strikes. I have also argued that if indeed the doctrine of privity applies to the situation, then the ongoing ASUU strike is an illegality and the students must rise up to the occasion to challenge  the mishap.

This article therefore takes a careful look at the issue vis-a-vis the existing labour laws in Nigeria so as to properly answer the question underscored by this piece. This article will also try to address some of the arguments raised by friends of mine on face book when I brought up the subject sometimes ago on the social networking site. One of them had contended that ASUU cannot be sued for the on-going strike as they are not the ones in breach of the agreement; the Federal government is. Thus the federal government should be sued instead. Another had also contended in favour of ASUU saying that, although it may be said that ASUU owes the students a duty to teach them by virtue of their being lecturers of the university, they nonetheless cannot dispose of those duties if their entitlements have not been paid them by their employers.  

Can ASUU be sued?

 Of a truth, as much as I would but like to share in the sentiments of my friends, I cannot but say that the answer to the question perhaps is that neither ASUU nor the Federal Government can be sued-My reasons are not farfetched.

First and foremost; the agreement between the Federal government & ASUU which was arrived at in 2009 for which ASUU has embarked on the current strike is a collective agreement which by law is non-enforceable (S. 91 of the Nigerian Labour Act cap L1 LFN 2004, Union Bank of Nigeria v. Edet (1993) 4 NWLR 288). A collective agreement may however be enforced where it has been incorporated into the individual contract of the employee as was judicially settled in the case of A.C.B V. NWODIKA(1996) 4 NWLR (pt. 443) 470. Nevertheless, since parties to a collective agreement cannot take legal action against each other for refusal to keep to the agreement, the law allows for a legitimate way by which employee unions can vent their annoyance over the non-implementation of an agreement arrived at between them and their employers and that is by embarking on strikes. (See section 6(b) &(c) and section 9(a) of the Trade Unions (amendment) Act 2005) It should be noted that the prerequisites highlighted by paragraphs a – e of section 6 above are the only legitimate grounds for which a trade union can embark on any strike action. Any trade union which embarks on strike contrary to section six above is guilty of an offence (See section 7 of the same act)

It will therefore mean that the students will have no case to be heard on should they decide to sue the union for the reason that ASUU by law is empowered to go on strikes to protect and promote their interests.

More so, assuming without conceding that the ongoing ASUU strike is an illegality probably because they did not give requisite notification to the government before embarking on the strike, the proper party to sue in that case is the government and not the students since there is no contractual nexus between the students and ASUU.

Can the Federal government be sued?

On the other hand, the federal government cannot be sued because although by virtue of section 18 of the 1999 constitution of Nigeria as amended, the government (which is inclusive of the federal and the state government) is mandated to direct its policies towards providing free and affordable education for all Nigerians as at when practicable, the same constitution provides in section 6(6) (c) that the government cannot be sued if it fails to provide the free education. by this singular provision the federal government cannot be sued by the students if the actions of ASUU (government employees) undermine their educational careers.

 Recommendations

·        Being that the students cannot sue ASUU as of right they however can appeal to the consciences of the striking lecturers to go back to the classrooms to teach them pending when the government will heed their demands.

·        Similarly the constitution guarantees the right of peaceful protest and peaceful assembly to all citizens. Where the strike gets out of hands students reserve the right under their umbrella body to protest the effects of the strike.

·        The ongoing constitutional amendment affords the legislature the ample opportunity to make the provision of section 18 and other provisions of chapter two of the constitution justiciable so that the government can be held liable each time they violate any agreement with the lectures which usually have adverse effects on the students.

  

ASUU STRIKE: a hub of adventurism part 2

Since I published the first part of this article, several meetings have been held by ASUU and the Federal government with a view to resolving their differences and arriving at a favourable bargain that would benefit them both. The meeting which was held on the 13^th of August 2013, between the officials of the union and the Benue state governor among other personalities who represented the interest of the Federal government at the meeting ended up in a deadlock as ASUU maintained that the agreement reached in 2009 by the two parties was non-negotiable. The meeting was however budged to Monday, the 19^th of August 2013 for further negotiations and as it turned out to be the same thing happened. The hopes of many were shattered at the news of the impasse and it is now more evident that the strike may take longer than anticipated and the quicker the students realised this, the better for them.

I will at this juncture put paid to this issue so as to continue with what I started the last time.

Exploit Your Potentials

 If you are a Christian, I suppose you will be familiar with this biblical aphorism that goes thus “a man’s gift will make way for him”

It will shock you to note that majority of persons making it big in our world today and the household names we are familiar with are not fed by the certificates they earned from school, rather their talents got them there. The popular comedian “lepacious Bose” for instance, is a graduate of law but as you and I well know she is today making waves in the comedy industry. She realized early the need to exploit her gifts while still in school. There are numerous other examples I would have loved to mention which but for space cannot be mentioned in this article. The truth remains that we cannot over emphasize the importance of our innate potentials. It is therefore left to us to look for avenues to exploit them.
What is it that you are gifted at? What do you like doing most of the times that you would not mind doing it the rest of your life? Whatever it is, this strike period affords you the ample opportunity to develop it and build momentum before you graduate from the university. For me, I love writing like I love pounded yam and egusi soup. I am so in love with it that I sometimes forget I had not eaten. In a bid to develop my writing skills I ensure I write at least an article everyday because by so doing I am making way for myself in the future just in case my certificate cannot earn me my desired living. This is so imperative for the reason that just as a pencil needs sharpening before it can be used to write so also do our gifts require honing before they can be of any use to us. Develop your gift, I say again!

Learn a Trade

I know that this is a very unconventional advice to give to any student at a time like this but I can guarantee that anyone who assiduously tags along with it will have me to thank for it in the end. The reason is not farfetched seeing that the society we live in is a dynamic one and has evolved over time. Indeed the days when Jack, a whiz of all of trades was master of none are long gone and the days of ambidexterity have emerged - yes these are the days when we can effectively do a lot of things at the same time. It therefore follows that each and every student must now begin to think of creating other streams of income while still in school so as to minimize the overt reliance on their parents for their every need. Since the schools are currently on strike I advice that students should take up the challenge of fending for themselves by learning any trade of their choice. Trades like tailoring, barbing, weaving, indomie sales joints, recharge card printing etc are examples of trades that can be learned without much ado. Tailoring in particular, is said to be one of the hit businesses these days. I have been reliably informed that to sow a first-rate Ankara shirt anywhere now in Nigeria is worth 2000 naira and more depending on the style. I personally did not realize the importance of learning a trade until the day my dad needed help with his hair. I remember that that particular day he had attempted to cut his hair himself when he realized he could not continue and asked if I could help. I told him I could and I went on to impress him with my remarkable skills - I barbed him clean and he was thankful for it. I think he even squeezed a stainless naira note in my hand for my work and it saved me a lot of troubles. So go learn a trade this strike period instead of sitting at home and watching TV all day long.

Do an Internship

It has been said and I believe same to be true, that the problem with most Nigerian youths today is not that there are no jobs but that they are simply unemployable! A lot of company executives have complained that majority of the job applicants who come to them for employment in their organisations are not competent enough for the jobs they seek. Those who eventually get employed on the basis of their certificates are found to be highly incapable and simply unfit for the jobs. I personally believe this is because most students only go to school to study their textbooks in order to pass their examinations without caring to consolidate on what they have been taught in the classroom with the practical aspects of the courses they offer. In view of this, I recommend that every student should do an internship at least twice before they graduate from the university so as to acquire the requisite practical knowledge in their chosen fields. Law students for example should attach themselves to chambers or law firms so as to equip themselves beforehand with court processes. Medical students can also take up jobs at the hospitals to better acquaint themselves with medicine in practice. This also applies to every other field of study. So instead of whiling away time during this strike period why not do an internship in one of those organisations that are engaged in work related to your field of study so as to equip yourself before hand? Some professions like the law profession even accept 2 years internship or more in place of 2 years experience for job applicants.      

finally, “Remember that the fight for global relevance is a deliberate one and if you must win then you must daylily live your life deliberately, fighting consciously and never leaving your life to chance”... Ayuk Kure