Islam

Friday Sermon: A Nation Without Heroes! Reflections on 65th Independence

Published

9 months ago

October 3, 2025

Eric

By Babatunde Jose

“Poor is the Nation that has no heroes, but shameful is the Nation that has them and forgets” – Author Unknown

Last Wednesday was October 1 and we celebrated our 65^th Independence anniversary, albeit without fanfare, parade or egungun festival. There was no reason to celebrate. An emasculated and bedraggled citizenry, traumatized with economic hardship of biblical proportion, impoverished and pauperized, people were in the last throw of death. Where will their redeemer cometh from?

It is said that the best things in life are free, but not in our clime. Cruising a woman is no more a viable proposition so that our men are no more thinking about marriage. Rents are now beyond the income of workers and the army of unemployed is forced to live a life of squatters. The minimum wage for those lucky to be employed is not enough to take them home. Transportation costs have taken more than half of their wages. To cut costs, many now squat in empty rooms in their offices.

Three scores and five years ago, we had everything before us, but progressively things started moving from bad to worse and today there is nothing before us; we are waiting for death, a revolution or a miracle. It has been a situation of Armageddon. Houses of worship are now filled to the brim. Would you blame them? When all else has failed, they have turned to God for salvation; giving impetus to the ‘God industry’; an industry for all comers, from the chosen to the charlatans.

Sixty-Five years after independence we have no heroes to celebrate, except the conclave of thieves who have robbed our nation blind.

Every country on earth has men and women who lived their lives in the service of their country. Every nation worth the name has its documented history outlining the struggles and achievements of its people. The history of a nation is usually incomplete without its great men, women and heroes and why not, its villains and scoundrels too. The main purpose of heroes is to inspire the future.

Let us consider the case of football and the generation of footballers who won laurels for Nigeria: Many people especially the young ones may not have heard of late Haruna Ilerika (Baba Ruke); ’a prodigious player from an obscure secondary school in Surulere, Lagos. He went on to play for the academicals and the Green Eagles while he was the star player for Stationery Stores (Flaming Flamingos). Ilerika died in obscurity just like other famed players after him.

Today’s children will grow up never knowing that Nigeria ever had such great footballers who brought the country continental fame and became household names. However, with the passage of time and our general decline as a nation, some of these heroes died virtual paupers, emaciated from illness and left behind a destitute family. They became unsung and the heroes in them died. However, a good many of them after football, went on with other chosen careers and became successful in life.

The reasons for the decline of the nation are not far-fetched: We lost our focus and our goal. In the days of glory, we raised and nurtured these heroes from the secondary schools. Those were the days when we excelled in almost any field of sports. Just as schools had unending competitions that threw up heroes in the fields of play, clubs sprang up to continue nurturing these gifted men and women. The police football and athletics club recruited young men and women fresh from school. There was also Ports Authority or The Marines who made waves on the football pitch. Names like Henshaw of Marines readily come to mind and there was the UAC club where Cyril Asoluka was one of the big names. Others were Teslim Thunder Balogun, Dejo Fayemi, Captain Duru.

The proverbial ‘music died’ with the incursion of the military and the bastardization of our educational system. Murtala/Obasanjo decreed the takeover of secondary schools and things have never been the same again. As they say, ‘nothing can ever come from nothing’.

A society that fails to groom and nurture its youths can never expect to excel in sports or athletics. Where are our Nduka Odizors on the tennis courts today, our Thompson Onibokuns, and Laurence Awopegba? They have been consigned to the dustbin of history. We used to have the Ogbe Hard Court tournament in Benin, and the Lord Rumens Tournament in Lagos. The Lagos Lawn that nurtured these men has sadly become a drinking club that features the likes of St Janet to serenade the patrons with her lewd lyrics.

Where we make any tangible waves these days are the products of individual talents that have been lucky to cross the Sahara or the Atlantic to seek grooming and sponsorship in other climes. That is the only reason we hear of such names as Blessing Okagbare, Tobi Amusan and the like. Left to this country, such budding stars could have been dimmed and forgotten. Have we produced another Hakeem Olajuwon?

In the recent World Athletics Championship in Tokyo, you hardly see a ‘green-white-green’ in most of the events. With our vast terrain, we could not field any athlete to compete in the 800 meters and above not to talk of the decathlon. The ones that occasionally come to light are so intangible as to make you ashamed. Most who qualified came last in their final race., no high jumpers or pole-vaulters, Haba!

The fault is not in our stars, but in a leadership that is bereft of vision and mission, a leadership that is incapable of galvanizing the energies of its youth, a leadership that has failed in all matters particular to offer a beacon of light to its youth, a leadership that is so infantile that it cannot work out the best possible way of bringing out 11 sharp players out of a population of 200 million souls; a leadership that has abdicated its role in the field of youth empowerment; a leadership that has been kidnapped, ranched and rugared. A leadership that is content with picking its first eleven from ‘Makoko’. No wonder people are no more interested in sporting events and have transferred their preferences to foreign sporting activities such as the Premier League and other European football.

Until we salvage our image and return to the path of righteousness, we would never produce heroes in this country. Those that manage to escape the net did so only by a fluke. Segun Odegbami captured the rot when he wrote: The last decade, 2000 to 2010 is one that presents the greatest difficulty. Player-quality has dropped significantly, team achievements have been few, and truly outstanding players have not shown up as evidenced by the dearth of Nigerian players in the annual selection of Africa’s best players by the CAF. It still rings true today.

Most of our star players in those days were recruited from the academicals and after their stint in the national team, they went to higher institutions abroad or here in Nigeria. There was therefore a succession scheme whereby when a set goes another replaces it.

Adokiye Amiesimaka, fondly called Chief Justice and a former Attorney-General in Rivers State is a product of Academicals football and so was Thompson Usiyen, Nigeria’s best striker of his time. Such was the strength, intensity, excitement, talent-flow and attention-capture capacity of academical football those days. It provided empowerment through well-paying jobs and scholarships to universities.

Names like Niyi Omowon (Omo Bey) of IICC Shooting Stars, a graduate of University of Ibadan and a ‘Great Independite’, while playing for Nigeria. The same goes for ‘No Moless’, late Soji Oshilowo who played for Nigeria while a student of Great Ife, and an ex-student of Mayflower School, Ikenne.

Academicals football, nay schools sports is it and there is the strong need to revive it because it provides a veritable well-pool of talent for the Eagles.

How can a system where corruption thrives, fueled by bribery, brazen lies, cheating and falsification of documents be expected to produce a football or sporting environment that is productive? A nation without heroes is nothing. Robert Clemente

Like in sports and other aspects of life, the quality of life has become Hobbesian and people have become Gazanized. Yet all along we are told that our economy is growing. It has been growing only for the leaders and their cohorts. As for the rest of us, we have increasingly become ‘hewers of wood and drawers of water; or in the Fanonian dialect ‘the wretched of the earth’.

We are all to blame for the retrogression: Both leaders and the led. Nigeria needs all of us to come together to salvage the nation from the rot. The growth in Nigeria’s economy since independence in 1960 has not significantly altered the lives and the general well being of the majority of its citizens. It has been a development despite the people. It is a disarticulated and directionless economy, bequeathing nothing but misery and poverty of every kind on the people.

“Despite being blessed with abundant human and material resources, we have failed to aggregate the parts into the collective whole, essentially because the accumulation of individual greed far outweighs the collective need. And we are still waiting on God’s help “to build a nation where no man is oppressed.” Segun Adeniyi

We should resolve to fashion a development paradigm that would propel us into self sustained growth that would benefit all Nigerians, even ‘though tribes and tongue may differ’. This is the only way we can be ‘proud to serve our sovereign motherland’.

“O Allah our Lord! Send us from heaven a table set (with viands), that there may be for us – for the first and the last of us – a solemn festival and a sign from thee; and provide for our sustenance, for thou art the best Sustainer (of our needs)” (Quran 5:114)

Barka Juma’at and a happy weekend

Islam

Friday Sermon: Rhapsody of Corruption: Eleven Years of ‘Change’ Revisited

Published

3 days ago

July 3, 2026

Eric

By Babatunde Jose

O mankind! Do your duty to your Lord, and fear (the coming of) a Day when no father can avail aught for his son, nor a son avail aught for his father. Verily, the promise of Allah is true: Let not then this present life deceive you, nor let the Chief Deceiver deceive you about Allah. (Quran 31:33)

After eleven years of supposedly relentless APC war against corruption and waste in government, one is saddened to come to the realization that nothing has changed.

There are many culprits for this pandemic of rabid puppies that is about to swamp the entire nation and infect the international community in the process. They include a dysfunctional and kleptocratic political class, a thieving bureaucracy, a disoriented traditional institution, a disordered military profession, a paralyzed police force, an alienated and enfeebled citizenry and a corrupt and corrupting spiritual merchant class that preaches the virtue of prosperity without commensurate hard work. – Tatalo Alamu

Corruption and crime are endemic sociological occurrences which appear with regular frequency in virtually all countries on a global scale in varying degree and proportion. Individual nations each allocate domestic resources for the control and regulation of corruption and crime.

Strategies to counter corruption are often summarized under the umbrella term anti-corruption. Corruption is a form of dishonesty or criminal offense undertaken by a person or organization entrusted with a position of authority, to acquire illicit benefit or abuse power for one’s private gain. Political corruption occurs when an office-holder or other governmental employee acts in an official capacity for personal gain. Corruption is most commonplace in kleptocracies, oligarchies, narco-states and mafia states.

A cursory glance at recent corruption scandals will give us a glimpse into the sordid matter.

The case against former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, involves multiple charges of money laundering, conspiracy, and unlawful acquisition of assets. The EFCC has filed 16 counts against Malami, his son, and an associate, Hajia Bashir Asabe, over alleged illicit financial transactions spanning several years. The charges allege that no fewer than 30 high-value properties worth about ₦212.8 billion were acquired through proceeds of unlawful activities. The case has garnered significant media attention and is being prosecuted by the EFCC.

The Betta Edu scandal involves allegations of corruption and financial misconduct by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu. She was suspended by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in January 2024 after being accused of diverting ₦585 million into a private account. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is investigating the case. The case remains inconclusive as nothing has been heard of it since her suspension, reinstatement and final replacement.

The case against former CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele involves allegations of $4.5 billion fraud. Emefiele has denied any wrongdoing, asserting that his actions were in line with the law and national interest. The case is still inconclusive.

The case against Sambo Dasuki involves allegations of criminal breach of trust and fraud amounting to N33.2 billion. Dasuki, along with Aminu Baba-Kusa and two companies, faced a 32-count charge. The case has been ongoing since 2015, with Dasuki first arraigned on December 14, 2015, and re-arraigned on May 11, 2018. As of the latest updates in late 2025, Sambo Dasuki remains in Nigeria, attending his ongoing trial, and has not been reported as incarcerated. His legal proceedings are still active, with the court allowing the EFCC to finalize its witness list and evidence before he opens his defense. The case continues to attract attention due to its long duration and the high-profile nature of the allegations.

Yahaya Bello, the former Kogi State Governor, is facing multiple legal challenges due to allegations of fraud and corruption. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed charges against him, accusing him of misappropriating state funds and committing financial misconduct during his tenure. Bello has been granted bail in both the Federal Capital Territory High Court and the Federal High Court cases, with bail amounts set at N500 million. The trial is ongoing, with the court’s jurisdiction upheld in dismissing applications to quash the charges. Bello remains an active political player that belies his corruption travails. This is Nigeria.

Former Kaduna state governor Nasir El-Rufai is facing 10 charges of corruption and money laundering in the Federal High Court. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) accused him of inflating severance pay by N579.7 million and fraudulent dollar deposits. El-Rufai allegedly received $817,900 through various unlawful bank deposits over the years while in office as governor. He is also facing criminal charges of wire-tapping.

There are more high profile cases too numerous to be listed in this short account. However, suffice to ask whether these crooked elite can make the kingdom. Yet, our anti corruption outfits continue to fight corruption but with modest success:

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has reported significant achievements in the fight against corruption and financial crimes in Nigeria. In 2025, the EFCC has secured over 7,000 convictions, with 4,111 of those reported in 2024 alone. The agency has also recovered over 365 billion naira in asset recoveries in 2024 and 500 billion naira cumulatively by 2025.

The increasing number of prosecutions and convictions, with associated refunds of large sums of money, is still ongoing.” But that is as the story goes. Corruption was not forced into hibernation or retreat.

The late sage, Obafemi Awolowo said “The pursuit of wealth is not a bad thing in itself because without the food and comforts which wealth provides, life will be penurious and drab. But always remember that any wealth accumulated on a selfish basis, at the expense of the State in defiance of social justice, helps to create a disorganized society in which everybody will eat everybody and no one person can be safe”.

It is becoming increasingly clear that it is a sin and unpatriotic for anyone to remain honest under this condition! How do you want to explain your condition of poverty and impoverishment to your children and children’s children? What would you tell them you were doing or where you were when their friend’s parents were looting the commonwealth? Where were you when the Police and the staff of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) shared N3.14 billion as palliatives for the COVID-19 pandemic? Were they resurrecting their dead colleagues who had died of Coronavirus?

No wonder someone said we are ‘fantastically corrupt’. Islam enjoins Muslims to play a proactive role in the anti-corruption campaign. It is seen as a veritable amal (right moral action); an act of great social benefit that elevates the standing of the ummah and the country.

Fighting bribery (rashwah) and corruption (fasad) is an integral part of the teachings of the Quran and Hadith. The Quran prohibits “devouring/misappropriation of the property of others” see Quran 4:29 and 2:188, which is a broad concept that subsumes such other offences as fraud, hoarding, theft, and gambling. The text also condemns those in authority who spread corruption and mischief among people, bestowing favors on some and oppressing others (Quran 28:4 and 89:10-12).

Overwhelmingly, institutional weakness enables most politically exposed persons to walk free. In 2022, Buhari granted pardon to two convicted politically exposed persons.

The NNPC, the Nigerian Ports Authority, the Nigerian Police Force, Customs and other graft-prone agencies have not been thoroughly cleansed.

A suspended Accountant-General of the Federation allegedly was able to steal N109 billion out of which he has returned N30 billion, according to the EFCC. What happened to the huge balance from the heist? And he is not yet in jail!

Many of the corruption cases, particularly the high-profile ones, remained pending before the courts due to administrative or procedural delays.

During the last administration, cases of budget padding were rampant. The ICPC revealed that MDAs ‘padded’ the 2021 budget to the tune of N300 billion. They allegedly ‘padded’ the 2022 budget with duplicated projects worth N100 billion. Yet there were no publicly known consequences for the complicit lawmakers and civil servants.

In 2021, an NGO compiled a list of 25 top corruption cases linked with stolen or mismanaged funds worth N900 billion, which the government was investigating but were left dormant.

A classic case is the story of how the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), spent the approved $8.5 million budget for the immediate evacuation of about 5,000 Nigerians stranded in Poland, Romania and Hungary when the Russia-Ukraine war started.

According to a copy of its response to a FOI request, NEMA spent $3,546,912.48, €84,952 and N36,480.

The total amount spent to evacuate 1,500 persons from three European countries to Nigeria in 10 days in March 2022, when converted into naira, is N1,543,513,266.944 (approximately N1.5 billion).

The document shows that the agency paid $2,224,000.00 to three airlines – Air Peace Limited received $1,224,000.00; Azman Air Limited received $500,000.00 and Max Air Limited also received $500,000.00.

NEMA also said 1497 returnees were paid $100 each, totaling $149,700.00 to empower them to their various destination after they landed safely in Nigeria.

Other payments for logistics and other items include payment to the Refugees Commission (Logistics) – $82,737.34, which is equivalent to N33,770,900.00, payment to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs Ministry (Logistics) – $14,318.51(USD) (equivalent to N5,925,000.00), payment to Foreign Affairs Ministry (Foreign Mission) – $1,076,156.63, another payment of Foreign Affairs Ministry (Foreign Mission) – €84,952.00 and payment to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for (Logistics) – N36,480,000.00.

This indicates that the agency did not exhaust the government-approved $8.5 million budgeted for the evacuation mission during the Russian-Ukraine war, leaving a balance of $4,793,504 (N1,983,551,999.256) left. We were not told what happened to the balance, but you are free to let your imagination run wild!

Evacuation of Nigerians from Sudan, created another avenue for ‘chop chop’. The government voted $1.4 million for the exercise. While most nations sent in their Air Force planes to evacuate their nationals, our people resorted to hiring buses to transport people from Khartoum to Aswan in Egypt where aircrafts would then fly them back to Nigeria.

That was not the scandal, imagine hiring buses from Khartoum to Aswan for the sum of $30,000 per bus. Wow!

We might not know the new formula that would be unveiled with the current evacuation of our people from South Africa. It is possible we will embark on mfecane or another forced migration or ‘great trek of heroic dimension’ from Jo’burg to Lagos.

Presently we are being regaled with another saga of an alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) which incidentally worked itself into the National Budget, secured offices in the National Secretariat and had been operating from there; holding meetings with foreign missions, sending note verbal to foreign embassies and holding world conferences in Abuja and operatiuon accounts with banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria. Fantastic country.

A question that continues to agitate the mind of spiritually minded people is whether these perpetrators’ of transgressions, iniquities and corruption in the land will make the kingdom?

But those who break the Covenant of Allah, after having plighted their word thereto, and cut asunder those things which Allah has commanded to be joined, and work mischief in the land; — on them is the Curse; for them is the terrible Home! (Quran 13:25)

Barka Juma’at and a happy weekend

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LAST LINE:

Bearer Keks add another year. Last Wednesday 1^st of July was the birthday of my favorite cousin, Mr. Fatai Akintola Kekere-Ekun, a quintessential good man, Bearer of no mean standing, and the ‘First man’ of the Judiciary! The birthday was heralded by thunderstorms and unprecedented rainfall and deluge of Noahkian proportion. But not the ‘rainfall according to the convention of Crescent Bearers, as Bearer Keks was up there in Abuja, far from the maddening floods. We wish him many more years in good health and vitality and in the service of mankind. May your days be long. Salaam

Islam

Friday Sermon: Prof Hakeem Olumide Danmole 1946 – 2026: Departure of a Comrade

Published

1 week ago

June 26, 2026

Eric

By Babatunde Jose

Let us reflect and contemplate. “Death is the only appointment none of us will miss. It does not check our age. It does not consider our plans. It does not wait for us to finish building, marrying, studying, traveling, or raising our children. It arrives exactly when Allah has decreed.

“Many of us live as though we have plenty of time. We postpone repentance. Delay forgiveness. Hold grudges. Neglect our prayers. And keep telling ourselves, “I will change tomorrow.” But how many people woke up expecting tomorrow and never reached the evening? How many left their homes never knowing it would be the last time? The frightening reality is that death is not far away—it is simply unseen.

“The grave is closer to us than many of the plans we are making. And when that moment comes, our wealth will stay behind. Our titles will stay behind. Our arguments and competitions will stay behind. Only our deeds will accompany us. The prayer you delayed. The repentance you postponed. The kindness you withheld. The Qur’an you neglected. The heart you broke. Everything will matter.

“So let us return to Allah before we are returned to Him. Let us repent before we wish for one more chance. Let us pray before others stand over us in prayer. Let us remember Allah today, before the day comes when people remember us only in their duʿā. May Allah grant us a beautiful ending, forgive our shortcomings, and make our last words in this world a testimony of faith. Ameen Yaa Hayyu, Yaa Quyyum, Yaa Dhul Jallal Wal Ikram” – Anonymous

We are all inexorably, marching closer to our grave. For every minute, hour, day, week, month, and year that we add, there is a corresponding movement towards the grave. “Every soul shall have a taste of death: And only on the Day of Judgement shall you be paid your full recompense. Only he who is saved far from the Fire and admitted to the garden will have attained the object (of Life): For the life of this world is but goods and chattels of deception.” (Quran 3:185)

What lesson do we get from this realization? In the not too distant future, we would leave all our amazing wealth, results of our accumulation and gathering and descend into the grave or rise up to heaven or hell alone without any accompaniments. Remember the gold, ornaments and other worldly goods buried with the Egyptian and Aztec kings, none left the earth with them.

We search the world for the renowned men of old like Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (1628 to 1658) who built the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the world, commissioned in 1632, to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. People don’t even remember him anymore.

As the years roll by, one day, one after the other, we will take our exit from this earthly plane. What is expected of each human being, where does his path lead him after the sojourn on earth?

The answer to this is exemplified in Ecclesiastes 3, the third chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book contains philosophical speeches by a character called ‘Qoheleth’ “the Teacher”; composed probably between the fifth and second centuries BC. Targum, and Talmud attribute the authorship of the book to King Solomon.

As for the grave, we are told the life of the deceased in the grave is different from his life in this world. It is a special kind of life in al-barzakh (the interval between death and the Day of Resurrection) which is not like life in this world. To this end we often pray for our dead to be spared the punishment of the grave.

Two important concerns of a good Muslim are his legacy and the grave. There is always the fear that his progeny would obliterate whatever good he has spent his life to build. It is a real and founded fear. May Allah give us children who will preserve our legacies. Amen.

“O Prophet! Truly We have sent thee as a Witness, a Bearer of Glad Tidings, and a Warner, And as one who invites to Allah’s (Grace) by His leave, and as a Lamp spreading Light. (Quran 33:45-46)

The Prophet (SAW) left a legacy of a political system that was the embodiment of guardianship and care of the people and whose distinctive qualities were justice and accountability in governance as acknowledged by Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

A system fashioned upon the words of Allah in Surah an-Nisa: “O ye who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: For Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts), lest ye swerve, and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well acquainted with all that ye do.” (Quran 4:135)

The prophet (SAW) said: “Each of you is a guardian and each of you is questioned over his subjects, the Imam is responsible over the people and he is questioned over his responsibility.”

Leaders such as Khalifah Umar bin Al Khattab who during the famine in Medina refused to eat anything but coarse food, saying; “If I don’t taste suffering, how can I know the suffering of others?”

Can we say these about our leaders? Do they even understand what it means to leave a legacy of service? Legacy is fundamental to what it is to be human. Being reminded of death is a good thing because death informs life. It gives you a perspective on what is important.

Stephen Grellet 1773–1855 said famously: “I shall pass this way but once; any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being; let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.”

Inna lillah wa ina ilehi rajiun. On the 1^st of June 2026, we lost a friend, brother and quintessential gentleman; Professor Hakeem Olumide Danmole, (HOD), historian, academic, administrator; born June 17, 1946; University of Ibadan, 1970-1974; University of Birmingham England, 1975-80; Prof. History, 1992.

According to Professor Toyin Falola, “But perhaps the most enduring aspect of Professor Danmole’s intellectual contribution was his insistence on how African Muslim societies must be studied. He rejected the colonial assumptions and challenged the myopic point of views with which African Islamic history had been interpreted. He wrote against the reduction of Islam in West Africa to mere expansionism and positioned the spread of the religion through a deeply rooted socio-economic and intellectual force that shaped institutions, promoted literacy, influenced diplomacy, birth new identities and social organization across centuries.

“His works on the Sokoto Jihad, Yoruba Muslim communities, Islamic scholarship in Southwestern Nigeria, and the continuity of indigenous intellectual traditions shows his commitment in reframing the complexities in African history. He understood the profound damage caused by colonial historiography that put Africans as passive recipients of civilization, rather than active participants in building institutions, ideas and a flourishing society. His writings largely dispelled the wrong colonial narratives. The esteemed scholar, like others who shared his views, saw history as liberation. To help recover African memory was, for him, a step in recovering its dignity. He understood the implications of cultural dependency and intellectual insecurity as products of being stripped of one’s historical confidence.”

As part of the activities marking the 50^th Anniversary of Lagos State in 2017, Professor Danmole gave a classic lecture: “Lagos: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” which touched incisively on various aspects of the history of Lagos State including the contentious “no man’s land” claim. It is however a fact of life and death that the erudite historian left without taking any of his research notes, hundreds of publications and mimeographs with him to the grave. That is the lesson of life. We come with nothing and depart with nothing.

I was opportune to meet late HOD at Ijebu Muslim College in 1969 where we were both art students in the HSC class. He was an ambitious student who was in a hurry to get his A Level and proceed to the university. I must confess, he infected me with this bug, which is one of the reasons I pursued my studies with vigor. He introduced me to what his erstwhile tutor at Jubril Martin, Baba Bamgbose, aka Bamgbosa, taught him; the art of short-cut to reading and preparation for examinations, called ‘pagbonje’. He nearly made me attempt the A ‘Level in lower six.

At the University of Ibadan where both of us took history, HOD was a diligent student, he branched off into Arabic and Islamic history, which led him to spend a year in Sudan which made him graduate in 1974. He would later berth in 1975 at the Center for West African Studies, University of Birmingham where he bagged his Masters’ and Doctorate.

Like we Joses, he was an Agarawu son. This would account for his lifelong relationship with late Professor Lateef Hussein (another Agarawu son), former Vice Chancellor of LASU who influenced Danmole’s transfer to LASU from the University of Ilorin.

I remember our escapades in their Olatilewa family home in Surulere and the antics of Hakeem’s brother, Taju, a colleague in the Daily Times and a prolific sports writer. TJD as he was popularly called was at Adeola Odutola Comprehensive when we were at Muslim College. A great guy and rascal. TJD preceded his brother to the grave. Inna lillahi wa inna ilehi rajiun.

Their father, Alhaji Danmole was a very great father, who indulged our youthful peccadilloes and rascality. May all their souls rest in peace.

Going back to the issue of death, there is no doubt it is a sound warning and reminder to us all that it’s a debt that we all owe and must pay anytime the giver of life decides to take it back.

We read in Surah Al-Imran, verse 185 (3:185): “Every soul shall taste death.” (Quran 3:185)

This verse is often cited to reflect on mortality, accountability, and the importance of preparing for the afterlife, serving as a central reminder in Islamic teachings about the fleeting nature of worldly existence and the certainty of death.

Every living being, regardless of status or power, will experience death. This emphasizes the transient nature of worldly life.

True recompense for deeds will be given only on the Day of Resurrection. Human efforts and rewards in this world are incomplete without divine judgment

Those who are saved from Hellfire and admitted to Paradise achieve ultimate success. This highlights the spiritual goal beyond worldly pursuits.

The verse reminds believers that the pleasures of this world are temporary and deceptive, urging focus on eternal life, hence the opening paragraph of this elegy.

May Allah SWT, in His infinite mercies, obliterate the shortcomings of HOD and with him that of his brother Taju and his late wife Professor Taibat Danmole, an accomplished scholar and former Commissioner for Education in Oyo State, and of course his late father. Inna lillahi wa ina ilehi rajiun.

“Foolish is the man who shows pride & arrogance on earth due to his wealth, not realizing that none of it will be of use in his grave.” Dr. Abu Bilal Philips

“Our Lord! Give us in this world (that which is) good and in the Hereafter (that which is) good & protect us from the punishment of the Fire.”(Quran 2:201)

Barka Juma’at and happy weekend

Islam

Friday Sermon: Facing Mount Arafat 3: A Prophet’s Final Admonition

Published

1 month ago

May 22, 2026

Eric

By Babatunde Jose

Khutbatul Wada’ or Prophet Muhammad’s (SAW) ‘last sermon’ was delivered on the 9th of Zulhijjah 10 A.H (632 C.E) on Mount ‘Arafat, Makkah.

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is an example for all of humanity. He was always a remarkable man. He excelled in all walks of life by being a prophet, ruler, statesman, orator, soldier, husband, friend, father and a grandfather. He was a man of love, patience, courage, wisdom, generosity, intelligence and exemplary character who inspires over a billion lives throughout the world.

Allah says in the Quran that he was sent as a mercy for the people of the world: And We sent thee only as a mercy for all mankind. وَمَٓا اَرْسَلْنَاكَ اِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِلْعَالَم۪ينَ; Wama arsalnaka illa rahmatanlilAAalameen. (Surah Al Anbiya, Quran 21:107)

Shortly before his death, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) delivered a sermon during the Hajj, which came to be known as his “Final Sermon”. This sermon was not only a reminder to his followers, but also the ‘final admonition’; it also heralded the end of his Prophetic Mission. Historically, the Farewell Sermon of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) occupies an important place in Islam.

The sermon consisted of summarized exhortations reflecting some of the core teachings of the Quran and Sunnah. The sermon exemplifies the Quran’s assertion that the prophet was but a Warner: This was mentioned 57 times in the Quran.

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) undertook his farewell and only pilgrimage in the year 10 A.H. and it has since been the model for performing the fifth pillar of Islam, the Hajj.

The Final Sermon:

“O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore, listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.

“O People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners.

“Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds. God has forbidden you to take usury (interest), therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived. Your capital, however, is yours to keep. You will neither inflict nor suffer any inequity.

“God has Judged that there shall be no interest, and that all the interest due to Al-Abbas ibn Abd’el Muttalib shall henceforth be waived… Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.

“O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have rights over you. Remember that you have taken them as your wives only under a trust from God and with His permission. If they abide by your right, then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and committed helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to be unchaste.

“O People, listen to me in earnest, worship God, perform your five daily prayers, fast during the month of Ramadan, and offer Zakat. Perform Hajj if you have the means. All mankind is from Adam and Eve. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over a black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white; [none have superiority over another] except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves. Remember, one day you will appear before God and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.

“O People, no prophet or apostle will come after me, and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O people, and understand words which I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the Quran and my example, the Sunnah, and if you follow these you will never go astray. All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and it may be that the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly. Be my witness, O God, that I have conveyed your message to your people.”

Thus the beloved Prophet (SAW) completed his Final Sermon, and upon it, near the summit of Arafat, the revelation came down: “…This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My Grace upon you, and have chosen Islam for you as your religion…” (Quran 5:3)

Perhaps it is more appropriate to present this ayat in proper context: “Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah; that which hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored to death; that which hath been (partly) eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it (in due form); that which is sacrificed on stone (altars); (forbidden) also is the division (of meat) by raffling with arrows: that is impiety. This day have those who reject faith given up all hope of your religion: yet fear them not but fear Me. This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion. But if any is forced by hunger, with no inclination to transgression, Allah is indeed Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Quran Surah Al Ma’idah Verse 3)

Indeed the meanings found in this sermon are astounding and it could rightly be described as the Prophet’s last Admonition.

But how have we as his followers kept to his admonitions? We have kept to them in the breach: An incorrigible generation, hell bent on disobedience and trenchant iniquities, we kill our fellow men, we enslave our women in the name of Sunnah, we persecute people of other faiths and engage in terrorism and are unjust to peoples of other races and ethnic persuasions, we are intolerant and intemperate in our manners and speech and we are bigots and fanatical in our ways. We have gone against all the things in the admonitions. We are unjust, nepotic and consume usury; we even export hard drugs to the ‘House of God; child abuse, prostitution and other forms of iniquities that make Sodom and Gomorrah pale into insignificance.

What will we not do for money? We dispossess the orphans and maltreat the widows. Sexual inequality which the Prophet preached against is still the order of the day in most Islamic countries and Muslim communities; 1,387 years after the Prophet, the Arabs and their cohorts still treat women as chattels.

The Admonition talks about equality of men but the Arab Muslims did not remember that when they came to enslave Africans, especially from East Africa. A generation of vile men and human anacondas, we even attempt to bribe God, but He refused to be mocked. On the Day of Qiyamah they will reap their just recompense. Walahi! There will be much weeping and gnashing of teeth, but it will be too late.

Let us reflect on ourselves, take a step back, and revive the core teachings of our Prophet (SAW) in achieving an ethical and moral society, wherever we are, where no one inflicts harm or injustice upon others.

May Allah grant us the strength to become better Muslims and better human beings.

LA ILAHA ILLA ANTA SUBHANAKA INNI KUNTU MINAZ ZALIMEEN: “None has the right to be worshipped but You (O Allah)), Glorified (and Exalted) are You (above all that (evil) they associate with You). Truly, I have been of the wrong-doers.”(Quran 21:87)

Barka Juma’at, happy weekend and Eid Mubarak and Barka da Sallah.