Maitama Sule: Exit of an elder statesman

WILLIAM Shakespeare wrote about greatness in one of his classic plays, Macbeth, thus: “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, while others have greatness thrust upon them.”

Looking at this quotation, it becomes difficult for me to write this tribute to Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule because I find it hard to choose my words.

Maitama Sule was an embodiment of pure love for humanity devoid of any hidden and selfish tendencies. He took everyone as his own son or daughter. He embraced all without discrimination as to tribe, religion or status.

He would never give up in pursuing any goal he had, especially when it concerned the actualisation of the country’s development, which he doggedly struggled for until his last breath.

He was a leading light in the social and political life of Kano and Nigeria in general. Despite his advanced age, he was still very strong in body, high in spirits and very formidable as a rallying point for the political destiny of this country.

He was not an armchair critic of the woes of   the nation; he sought for solutions and instituted various platforms for redirecting the course of Nigeria. His zeal for the country and the pains he had for its political, economic and social emancipation seemed to bother him throughout his lifetime.

My personal encounters with Sule at Bayero University, Kano, on many occasions where he delivered public lectures were life-enriching. Space would not permit me to say much more about him.

His relationship with students is another legacy that should instruct us all. He always wished the students to be greater than their parents in life’s achievements and my students always appreciated and loved him for that.

He adopted a special, golden way to tackle the rigorous scales of life before he finally took his exit into the great beyond. We Miss Baba’s handshake, goodwill, advice and his smiles that could uplift anyone’s spirit.

Anyone who belonged and still belongs to Sule’s school of thought and ideology cannot be associated with laziness, corruption, evil, wickedness, maltreatment of the downtrodden or indifference to the things that affect the people.

He did not only speak against societal vices, he also did something about them. If you see me carrying a lantern in broad daylight, do not be surprised: I am searching for another Maitama Sule and God help me if I ever find one…. Adieu, Maitama.

Aondover Msughter

[email protected]