Note Of An Undergraduate

On 29 May, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan announced the renaming of the University of Lagos as Moshood Abiola University, Lagos. Ever since, there have been protests and demonstrations by students of the institution.

I find it painful because even when Nigerians rose up against the increase in fuel pump price in January, the government did not fully respond to their agitations. Though I’m not a supporter of many decisions taken by the government in recent times, I solemnly condemn the protests by the students of UNILAG over the issue.

It hurts me because they don’t know that Moshood Abiola was a hero, a fighter and a philanthropist. While watching the news on television on 1 June, different comments made by the students of the school showed that they don’t know what the man stood for.

One of them said: “Abiola was not an educationist, he was a politician and a business man. If he is going to be honoured it should not be by changing the name of our school, why not do that in his own state or go to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.”

The comment of the student shows that he knows nothing about M.K.O, a man who made huge donations to all federal universities –including the university in question.

He gave over 1,000 scholarships, built libraries and made books available for students. Even if all the federal universities, hospitals , etc. are renamed after Moshood Abiola, it is not enough to honour a man who was oppressed and murdered after serving this country.

And who says I am in support of the President? Though I commend his efforts in honouring a hero like MKO, he should have gone through due process. But that is just by the way.

I expect students to only protest when their schools are shut or tuition fees increased. Your mission in school is to learn and graduate. The university is nobody’s property. So, I suggest that the students should stop the protests.

—Abdul Rahaman Onasoga writes in from Lagos.