Thank God for Facebook and other
social network sites, it is now easy to be aware of the daily news making the
rounds in town by just accessing your profile, and without going through the
'stress' of listening to the radio, watching T.V or reading a newspaper.
So it was on May 29th 2012. I had
barely logged on to my Facebook and Twitter accounts when I discovered that the
trending topic "hot gist" that morning was the re-christening of the
University of Lagos (UNILAG) by President Goodluck Jonathan.
The new name amused me when I first
heard it and majority of the posts and pictures on blogosphere were just making
carricatures of the whole situation e.g one said the National Association of
Aristos had met and decided to boycott Unilag (Maulag) girls evidently because
of their now ugly name.
I had a good laugh over it. But as events wore on, I
discovered that, clearly, this is not a laughing matter. Not with the students
protests and also the comments of eminent personalities (alumni and non-alumni
alike) on the matter.
At first, I couldn’t get what the furore was all about. I
still don’t get it!
What is the bone of contention?
- Is it that the new name MAULAG
is so hideous and the students can’t stand it?
- Is it that the President did
not follow due process in renaming the school?
- Is it that UNILAG as an
institution is so sacred that its name must not be changed to honour a
national hero?
- Is it that UNILAG is too small
to be bear the name of “Kashimawo Abiola (as he was fondly called) and it
should have been something like the National Stadium?
- Is it that it was bad timing in
light of the recent death of the institution’s VC?
What is the matter?
For as long as I can remember, one of the major ‘sins’
counted against the PDP led government by the Yoruba nation is the fact that no
befitting post humous honour has been bestowed upon MKO Abiola at federal
level.
As a result of this, I was surprised at the uproar President
Jonathan’s decision generated even from the core of pro-democracy activists in
the years before 1999. And this got me thinking, are the opposition parties
making noise just because they feel they have to make noise? Is this a case of
never being able to please everybody?
I honestly thought that the Yoruba people would be happy
that the government had finally done something to immortalize Abiola after so
many years of neglect, but……….
Well, I guess in Nigeria, the more you look, the less you
see and understand.
Please I want to hear your opinion on the matter. That way,
I may know something I’m unaware of!
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