University of Lagos to Moshood Abiola University? Just ask yourself: What kind of serious consideration could have led to an issue that could only add more fire to an already combustible national situation? And yes, why not the National Stadium at Abuja or Lagos? Why not any of the newly created Federal Universities?
It would even seem that the decision took the staff and students of the institution by surprise, hence the protest. Yet someone says we ought to take these decisions as 'inevitable'. We are in trouble, Nigerians. Deep, serious, unfortunate trouble.
How many years does this guy have more, please?
Adeshina Afolayan
Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
From: basil ugochukwu <ugochukwubc@yahoo.com>
Sender: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Date: Tue, 29 May 2012 11:31:01 -0700 (PDT)
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com<usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
ReplyTo: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Protest from students of the new re-named school-MAU
Is it not the case that nine new federal universities are being established across the country? Couldn't one of them have been named after Abiola? Rather than create unnecessary angst of the kind currently being witnessed (the consequences of this action would take time to manifest), couldn't any other national monument have been chosen? I mean like the Eagle Square, the National stadium in Abuja, the one in Lagos or even the International Conference Centre in Abuja. I am myself a victim of the arbitrary renaming of an educational institution. It leaves a sour taste in the mouth. So let no one attribute ephemerality to the action Jonathan just took. It upsets far too many historicaly settled matters. In death, Abiola does not deserve this controversy.
From: "woleatere01@yahoo.com" <woleatere01@yahoo.com>
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2012 12:36:07 PM
Subject: Re: RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Protest from students of the new re-named school-MAU
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2012 12:36:07 PM
Subject: Re: RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Protest from students of the new re-named school-MAU
I have watched with interest, the views expressed on this matter. Dare I say at the risk of voicing a minority view that it is a needless protest. Like someone wrote, this is NOT the first nor will it be the last time a University would be renamed. Several people had expressed misgivings about the non-recognition of the hero that the Late Abiola was in the development of democracy in Nigeria. Now that it has come, it is being greeted with protest. Perhaps we require a reminder that the affected University is funded by the Federal Government symbolised by President Goodluck Jonathan. In any case, the other University that would have been focused is the Federal University, Abeokuta. My suspicion is that it is being reserved for former President Obasanjo, when he eventually passes on. As for the Senate of the University, no Senate that understands the workings of government owned University will make such an issue a matter for Senate debate. I admonish 'the stakeholders' in the University to prevent an avoidable crisis by accepting the change as inevitable, after all change is the only permanent phenomenon in life. Meanwhile, kudos to Mr President. Adewole Atere, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Criminology. Osun State University
-- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "USA-Africa Dialogue Series" moderated by Toyin Falola, University of Texas at Austin. For current archives, visit http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue For previous archives, visit http://www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa/ads/index.html To post to this group, send an email to USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to USAAfricaDialogue- unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
-- Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
From: chukwuma adilieje <chumadil@yahoo.com>
Sender: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Date: Tue, 29 May 2012 08:59:08 -0700 (PDT)
To: <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
ReplyTo: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Cc: chuma<chumadil@yahoo.com>
Subject: Fw: RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Protest from students of the new re-named school-MAU
| Femi My brother, you are quite right there. It appears to me that politics was the overriding consideration in the decision to rename the University after the Late M.K.O. Abiola of blessed memory, should not have been so. My humble opinion is that this University of Lagos should be drawn into the murky waters of Nigerian politics. Besides if proper consultations of with all the stake holders were undertaken before the change was announced I doubt that we would witness the kind of demonstration and outpouring of anger among the various stake holder who have already voiced their regret over the change and urged its reversal. I believe that, were chief M.K.O. Abiola to be alive today, he would like late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe who in 1986, rejected such an honour after University of Nigeria was renamed after him, do the same thing. This is really a disservice to the memory of Chief Abiola, because the last thing anybody should do is to drag his name to the mud after he had lived his life and earned his image as a great philanthropist and businessman; democracy Icon and a pillar of sports in Africa. everyone is I spoken to is agreeable to having an appropriate honour done to the memory of M.K.O. Abiola. There is no reason why anybody should choose to paint Abiola as a controversial figure after his death. As I write this the Alumni, ASUU, and the non- Academic staff members of the University have all rejected this sudden change of name. From available information the Senate of the may follow suit as many senior professors in the university have also voiced their opposition to this change. The university does not belong to members of the Federal Executive Council but to all its stake holders who ought to have been properly consulted. The name University of Lagos, symbolizes all its past achievement and and its present standing in international education sector. It is what it is today, partly because of what itself good name brings to it. I am also talking in terms of what image the numerous people across the world have about the university and its graduates over the years. The name change make a mess of the efforts of the past years to build a brand that is capable of attracting national and international goodwill the every university so very much deserves. The name change takes the university back to the level of new universities in Nigeria that are still struggling to find their feet both in terms of track record of academic standards, quality of learning and level of human resources development, as it will now be faced with the unenviable task of convincing the public that the name change should not affect its image and integrity. The track record of any university includes its name and is part of what attracts quality academics and students to it. But the question should therefore be asked : "What was wrong with the name University of Lagos that warranted a desperate desire to change it or reposition the university?'. If it is just a change of name, do you change a good name which any institution has built without hurting that institution or truncating its past glory standing a risk of reversing its progress? --- On Tue, 5/29/12, Femi Kolapo <fj_kolapo@hotmail.com> wrote:
|
No comments:
Post a Comment