Falola: The African Sage

After I read the write-up by Professor Serges Kamga, flying in the sky of praises and elucidation, I commented on his piece as follows:

 “*Falola again?*

I have thought about Professor Falola’s professional and humanitarian achievements several times, wondering how how he managed to go this far. I wonder if there are other African academics who have achieved like him, or if there were such people or if there will be such achievers in the future. If not because of scientific age of record keeping and establishing facts,  if Falola had existed thousand years ago, some people of today might have considered him a mythological figure because of his unimaginable academic and social feats.

I first knew about him when he visited Federal University Lokoja during convocation. He appeared so energetic and spoke very brilliantly though informally. He gifted our library many of his books. I asked myself that day, ‘Does this scholar rest at all?’ ‘How does he go this far’, when I heard that he became a professor at the age of 35, and that he has been a professor for 33 years (at the time he gave the lecture in FUL) and the number of publications ( then, more than 400 journal articles and more than  100 books) he had to his credit.

At a point, I sought his help via email conversation, and surprisingly he responded to me immediately. He tried to secure my need for me for more than two years before we eventually quit. I was so happy then that a scholar of that might and usefulness can relate with me (an Assistant Lecturer, without a PhD) with great level of ease and respect.

If I am asked when I live in this world and elsewhere to mention few of the God’s miracles in ‘scholarly humanity’, Falola will definitely be among the foremost on my list.”

 *SULYMAN, A.A. (Happiness)*

Belated happy birthday, Legend.

Best wishes,

Abdulganiy Aremu Sulyman