The individual who desires to broaden the horizon of development for not only himself but also the society must be ready to render service to enable others to realise their full potential. Great men and women become what they are because they are engaged in service for the common good. Those who intend to be great must not see life as competition; they are always willing to take less of what comes their way in order to lighten the burden of others.
Writing on the essence of life, the American Poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, says: “Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end or way; But to act, that each tomorrow Find us farther than to-day”.
Longfellow’s position is further supported by the American philosophical essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson, who says: “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honourable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well”.
In serving humanity, the target is to realise the overall good for the overall majority. Attempts by man to triumph over his unquenchable greed are manifested in the titanic struggles between forces of darkness and light. The triumph of self does not end the urge by man to expand his avarice for material possessions.
Additional possessions only fuel the urge for more. The man in a mansion is not spared the mindless quest for more than the man with little. When man is dominated by the urge to realise his insatiable wants; he becomes a slave to self-inflicted avariciousness. Nigerian leaders’ quest for obscene wealth is the reason why millions are entrapped in islands of cascading poverty in a vast ocean of limitless prosperity.
That Nigeria is one of the blessed nations on earth in both human and natural resources is never in doubt. That citizens are still entrapped in this hole of strangulating poverty is not a reflection of lack of divine blessings; it is strictly anchored on leadership deficits. Our nation is miles away from a national leadership committed to the service of citizens; with most of our leaders strictly concerned with helping themselves with public funds.
There can be no better time than now for our nation to strategise for the emergence of leadership anchored on service and love for fellow citizens. We need leadership that is devoid of floodlights for applause. For a nation that has lingered for too long in the dark, the dawn of a new era is necessary if citizens are to crawl out of a deep cesspit of crippling disillusion.
Since President Muhammadu Buhari bestowed National Honours on some distinguished Nigerians on Tuesday October 11, 2022, in recognition of their invaluable contributions to the country’s development, there have been discordant tunes over the suitability of candidates decorated with such national honours. While some were quick to note that some of the honourees were less deserving of the class of awards conferred on them, not a few heaved a sigh of relief that at last, these honours finally came the way of honourees.
Though the long list of the honoured was described in some quarters as too long, the politics involved in the awards attracted scalding criticisms from some members of the public. Though there are reasons to be justifiably angry at some names on the honour list, some of the awardees are men and women of integrity whose love for the country has sustained and continue to hold an inspiring ray of hope for citizens of a despairing country like Nigeria.
One of the national honour’s recipients is no other person than the accomplished scholar of global reckoning and former Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Professor Suleiman Elias Bogoro. If intelligence is said to intertwine with arrogance and self-importance, this Professor of Animal Science is devoid of these two frailties. Professor is a humanist to the core who believes in the good of others.
When last Tuesday Bogoro was hosted to a dinner to celebrate the conferment of the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) on his person, it turned out to be a night of tributes on an intellectual humanist whose love for humanity raised the bar in the delivery of quality public service.
The event, which attracted the presence of distinguished Nigerians, especially from the Academia, provided a platform for many guests to recall their friendship with Bogoro whose large heart has refused to abandon people in need. A classmate to Bogoro and former Ambassador to Burkina Faso, David Gambal Bala, recalled the essentials of the former TETFund’s ES: “I have known him since 1976, and since then, we have been together. I admire him greatly. We thank the recommender of this award.
“Two things stand up for him: His tenure as ES of TETFund where he raised the bar on how public officers should conduct themselves. He has done so much towards the development of our country. Apart from being too generous to a fault, as an assistant lecturer, he would write post-dated cheques to people who had approached him for financial assistance”.
The Vice Chancellor of the University of Jos, Professor Tanko Ishaya, described Bogoro’s humanity as astounding and said the best of his years are still ahead of him.
In his words: This is just the beginning. The University of Jos will never forget Prof Bogoro. Within the last six years, Prof Bogoro made the University of Jos the envy of others. The Faculty of Agriculture in University of Jos is now known as Professor Bogoro Faculty of Agriculture. He founded the UniJos Centre of Excellence. Bogoro believes that every star can shine in the skies. The best is yet to come for this gem called Prof Bogoro”.
The Vice Chancellor of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, (ATBU), Professor Muhammad Ahmad AbdulAzeez, said there were no fitting words to describe the personality of Bogoro in terms of his deep love and quality service as a humane technocrat.
Calling on some of the professors and other lecturers from ATBU, who attended the event, to come to the podium, the VC declared: “Professor started his teaching career in ATBU. We appreciate the Centre of Excellence you established when you served as the TETFund ES. Bogoro is a good person. ATBU will never forget your unforgettable contributions”.
For the former Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Gashua, Yobe State, Prof Andrew Haruna, the remarkable achievements of Professor Bogoro as TETFund’s boss can never be erased in the history of tertiary education in Nigeria. He is not only wise, Bogoro, according to the former VC, is forthright and remains a reference point in public service.
Director General of Animal Institute, Prof Eustace Iyayi, described Professor Bogoro as a humble man, adding: “He is a friend and brother. He combines humility and ability to serve humanity. Bogoro has left unprecedented service to humanity”.
National President of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Dr Pogu Bitrus, applauded the patriotic zeal of Bogoro, stressing that he has always identified with ethnic nationalities of the Middle Belt. Saluting Bogoro on behalf of the Leader of the Middle Belt, General TY Danjuma (retd) and Chairman of the MBF Elders’ Council, Air Commodore Dan Suleiman (retd), Dr. Pogu described Professor Bogoro as a rare gift whose commitment to the service of Nigeria is unrivalled.
President of the Gindiri Old Student Association (GOSA), Engr. Sunday Hyat, was full of praises for Bogoro who is also an old student of the school: “We are here to celebrate an icon, GOSA par excellence. The award of OON on Professor Bogoro by President Muhammadu Buhari is in recognition of his many contributions to national development. Bogoro has not only redefined public service; he has re-conceptualised public service for quality delivery. This award is to further spur him to further provide service to our nation and people”.
Considering the footprints of Bogoro in TETFund, he is best remembered for his endless efforts at institutionalising the Research and Development Foundation in deploying the knowledge economy for national development. He deployed synergies among critical stakeholders and successfully changed mindsets that relegated the place of research in broadening the frontiers of national development.
