Browsing: Tribute

Still, I mustered some courage and emailed the gentleman, telling him I graduated successfully but fell short of First Class, thus making me ineligible for his offer, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the son of a common man. He called me immediately that day and told me when he’d be in Sokoto, and asked me to meet him.

It was William Shakespeare, the iconoclastic poet, playwright, actor and perhaps, the greatest writer in English language, who in his 1602 writing in the play Twelfth Night, noted that “some people are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them”. Four hundred and twenty two (422) years after Shakespeare uttered that phrase, every line of the literary quotation is as relevant today as it was then.

Yesterday, friends, relations and colleagues of Salihu Bappa met at the Pavilion in Abuja in remembrance of his contributions to society, his commitment to progress and in recognition of the role he played as an anchor of networking across generations, disciplines and numerous associations. The memorial event was chaired by his friend and school mate Ahmadu Muazu, former governor of Bauchi State who emphasized Bappa’s role as a bridge builder across communities and networks since their childhood days in Gindiri where they grew up in a very mixed convivial Plateau State.

Nearly half a century ago, my father, Sultan Ibrahim Dasuki of blessed memory, headed a committee which proposed lasting solutions for the dysfunctions within our local government system. The ongoing conversation about restructuring local government councils to enhance their effectiveness as the third tier of government echoes his memory. He led a committee that proposed solutions to this enduring threat to our federalism, yet those recommendations were not fully adopted, and this generation continues to pay the price.