For Teju
In 2001, Teju came to Ilorin, a bag of humility and candour, going ahead of you, and leaving you no room to shower encomiums on him for his bewildering scholarship evident in every new work he brings out, by generously pouring accolades over every little thing you had recently done. Such was the infinitenes of his grace and priceless appreciation of humane values in others! He had requested me to kindly find someone who could accompany him to our Esie, (Nigeria's prime Museum of soap stone and wonderous images believed to have been produced by the gods!). When I offered to drive him from Ilorin, you could touch palpably the quality of his appreciation for nearly nothing, compared to the immeasurable lives he has bequeathed to us through the matchless products of his profound mind in terms of scholarly studies on the rarest of subjects - Fela, whose music
He had dared petty mimics in undeserved power to arrest, among numerous other outcome of genuine and painstaking research. When Femi Osofisan exploded the shock of his demise, in our state of wilful unbelief, disbelief and anger with the unconscionable rascality of death, we remembered the last time we saw him, hosting him, Pius Adesanmi and Adeeko in Africa Pot in Ilorin. We had just finished a session devoted to the late Abiola Irele. Now without any warning at all, we have lost two if brightest and best minds in rapid succession!! Only recently, they had sent an email, promising to have the interview he wanted to conduct with me on the mammoth Biography on Wole Soyinka. Now the pond is running dry and the big fishes are disappearing. A great intellectual and fine scholar, it is a great tragedy that has befallen our house of knowledge, culture and intellection. It is very difficult to say odabo, to one who has so much treasures yet to deliver to the world.
Sunre o, irreplaceable jewel, Tejumola I'm Olaniyan.
cadieProf. Olu Obafemi FNAL. NNOM.
Professor of English and Dramatic Literature.
Toyin Falola
Department of History
The University of Texas at Austin
104 Inner Campus Drive
Austin, TX 78712-0220, USA
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